Agra. The Agra Municipal Corporation has made special arrangements this year for the immersion of Ganesh idols following the conclusion of the Ganpati festival. To protect the Yamuna River from pollution, devotees will not be permitted to immerse idols directly into the river. Instead, temporary immersion ponds have been prepared at four major ghats across the city.
The Municipal Corporation has arranged these ponds at Hathighat, Kailash Ghat, Balkeshwar Ghat, and Dussehra Ghat. The ponds will be filled with Ganga water instead of water from the Yamuna. The Ganga water supplied to Agra through a pipeline from Palda will be used to fill the ponds.
The arrangement has been made in accordance with the guidelines issued by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to control pollution caused by idol immersion in rivers and other water bodies. The Municipal Corporation aims to prevent pollution in the Yamuna while ensuring that devotees can carry out the immersion ritual conveniently and safely.
Barricading is being installed around the immersion sites as a safety measure. Municipal Corporation staff will also be deployed to assist devotees and monitor the arrangements throughout the immersion process.
Additional Municipal Commissioner Shishir Kumar, accompanied by Assistant Municipal Commissioner Ashok Priya Gautam, inspected Hathighat. During the inspection, he directed Zonal Sanitary Officer (ZSO) Ashutosh Verma to ensure that an adequate number of staff members are present at the ghat during the immersion.
Assistant Municipal Commissioner Ashok Priya Gautam said the temporary ponds had been prepared in accordance with NGT guidelines. He appealed to devotees to immerse Ganesh idols only in the designated ponds set up by the Municipal Corporation. A Municipal Corporation team will remain deployed at the sites to monitor the arrangements and ensure that the immersion process is conducted safely and systematically.
