Bombay HC Judgement Sparks Outrage As Green Activists Slam CPCB’s U-Turn On PoP Idol Ban

Mumbai: The environment activists have strongly condemned the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) submission in the Bombay High Court that the 2020 guidelines on making and immersion of Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols issued by them are ‘advisory’ and not enforceable.

Activist Rohit Joshi, who had filed the Public Interest Litigation (PIL), slammed the CPCB for its U-Turn, calling the body irresponsible and an institutional failure.

“We express our deep dismay and condemnation at the CPCB’s latest affidavit dated 7th June 2025, wherein it has reneged on its own 2020 guidelines that clearly banned the use and immersion of PoP idols in water bodies. After years of legal proceedings, policy consultations, and widespread scientific consensus on the severe environmental damage caused by PoP idols—particularly their toxic chemical paints and non-biodegradable composition—the CPCB has now taken a completely contradictory stand,” Joshi said.

He added that this is not just an institutional failure, but it is a direct abdication of CPCB’s statutory responsibility under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

Environmentalist and director of NGO Vanshakti said, “The CPCB should close down if its guidelines are not mandatory to follow. If its guidelines are advisories, then we do not need a central body for issuing advisories.”

The petitioners also demanded that an official public clarification and accountability statement from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) on CPCB’s withdrawal from enforcement.

“This is not a fight against faith or tradition—it is a plea for responsible celebration, rooted in the values of environmental protection, public health, and sustainability. Culture must evolve with conscience. By washing its hands off enforcement, CPCB is paving the way for unchecked pollution in the name of tradition, while shifting the entire burden onto State Governments and Urban Local Bodies without providing scientific support, financial aid, or regulatory clarity,” Joshi added.