India, Sept. 8 -- Following orders from the Bombay High Court, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is, for the first time, trying to recycle the Plaster of Paris (PoP) remains of Ganapati idols submerged during the 10-day festival. The civic body had approached 12 institutions seeking methods to recycle the large quantity, in a bid to be environmentally sustainable.

During the festival, the BMC retrieved a total of 1,982 metric tonnes of PoP from across the city, and 436 vehicles carried and unloaded it at a holding facility in Bhiwandi. The civic body has approached institutions including the Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute, the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B) and others, to find solutions to recycle the ...