In a small but significant step, the sanitation department of the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) has continued with its tradition of utilizing “Garbis (earthen pots) in an elegant, eco-friendly and above all productive manner.
Attractively decorated Garbis are traditional earthen pots with lamps worshipped during Navratri to symbolize the source of life, and the civic administration has lived up to its meaning.
In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the MBMC had issued a circular stating devotees won't be able to immerse the idols on their own. Instead, the civic administration had tagged multiple collection centers at strategic locations across the twin-city, where devotees handed over the idol of the goddess, floral offering (Nirmalya) remains and the earthen pot called "garbi"- which is worshipped by placing an oil lamp and the flame is kept burning non-stop for the nine days of the festival.
As a part of their reuse-reduce-recycle scheme under the Swachh Bharat Mission, civic chief-Dilip Dhole and his deputy Ajit Muthe have made elaborate arrangements to convert the floral remains into green manure by treating it in special vermicomposting pits and utilizing the earthen pots to grow tulsi (holy basil) and other ornamental plants.
“This year we have safely collected over 16,000 pots which we will use to grow the plants with our in-house manure. The decorative and colourful pots will add to the beauty of municipal gardens and other civic properties.” said health inspector- Anil Rathod.
Apart from the pots, the sanitation department has collected around two tonnes of floral remains which will be used to produce manure. While the bulk of the generated manure was used as a fertilizer in the municipal gardens, the civic administration was mooting on a project to use the organic manure to grow a variety of vegetables.
Notably, the MBMC had bagged the prestigious Skoch, Order-of -Merit Award for successfully implementing green manure conversion by optimizing floral offerings in 2019.
