Environmentalists, take heart: Lord Ganesha will no longer be immersed in Lalbagh without sparing a thought for the lake. This Ganesha Chaturthi, falling tomorrow, the Lalbagh Horticultural Department is planning to employ five expert swimmers to do that job professionally for a nominal fee.The department’s aim is to control reckless immersion of idols, which is causing damage to the lake, Joint Director of the Department of Horticulture, Lalbagh, S. Ashwath says.Besides, the department is preparing a project report on Ganesha immersion in Lalbagh, and also building a separate ‘immersion pool’ for this purpose. ‘‘This will put an end to contamination of the lake to a large extent,’’ Ashwath said. Tomorrow, the immersion will be restricted to the west gate of the lake on R.V. Road, he said. The swimmers will be given strict instructions not to allow anything other than idols inside the lake — before immersion, they will remove all pooja material, including garlands and eatables, from the idols, Aswath said.The department will also urge people to use Ganesha idols coloured with herbal paints. ‘‘The lead used in making the idols poses a threat to water bodies in the lake,’’ he said.
