Ganesha devotees vs historic lake: PIL in NGT to urge authorities to protect Dhamapur lake in Maharashtra

Indian Express

20-06-2025

More than 500 years ago, in the lush forests of Sindhudurga district, two villages, Dhamapur and Kalse, came together and constructed an earthen dam, creating a water reservoir that acted as a flood mitigation measure. The Dhamapur lake, which is a World Heritage Irrigation structure of the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, is now under threat from immersed Ganesha idols. A public interest litigation (PIL) was filed at the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in Pune on June 10 against the immersion of idols and washing of utensils and clothes in Dhamapur lake, and to urge authorities to take greater ownership.
'If you take a bird's eye view of Dhamapur village, you will see that there is a Karli creek on one side and a plateau on the other. The region receives heavy rainfall, around 3,000 mm, and we can understand that there would have been flooding in those days. The earthen dam was built to stop the water flow, and a huge lake was created. After creating the lake, the villagers realised that the water could be channelled through the farm fields and then connected to the Karli creek. We see that the dynamics of this engineering were compatible with the biodiversity and ecosystem,' said Sachin Desai of the University of Life, a centre for sustainable livelihood and lifelong learning run by Syamantak Trust in Dhamapur.
He further said that the canal that winds from the field is connected to the creek. 'So, the salinity of the creek water is reduced because fresh water continuously flows into it from the field,' Desai added.
Around 15 years ago, the Syamantak Trust realised that the dynamics of the lake were not well-known among the local people, largely due to migration. 'We saw that they were constructing a skywalk inside the lake. This was something abnormal, and a student from our organisation, who went on to become a lawyer, filed a petition in the NGT against the skywalk,' said Desai, adding that they did a complete documentation of the entire village at the time. The result was that the court gave a stringent order against the skywalk.
It was during this time that the organisation observed that over 200 idols were immersed in the lake. 'At one point, the villagers and even the people of Malvan town were complaining that there was significant siltation in the lake, which was reducing its water-carrying capacity. According to the Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency – Vol. X, published in 1880, and old scriptures, the lake's depth was around 38 feet. In its history of 500 years, the lake has never shrunk. In 2019, for the first time, the water reached the dead level. We see the wisdom of old engineering and how modern techniques and technology have been harmful to the water body,' said Desai.
A further survey revealed that the clay for Ganesh idols was being brought to the Konkan from Gujarat and Rajasthan. Ganeshotsav is a major festival in the Konkan, and though the use of Plaster of Paris in making idols is not allowed by law, shadu mati was not helping either. Yet, truckloads of the clay were coming to the region. 'Then second thing we found was that the idol makers were putting some kind of hard plastic to create the ornamentation for the idols. All this was being immersed in the lake,' said Desai.
'The collector sanctioned around Rs 10 lakh to the irrigation department, and an immersion tank was constructed. But which authority would ensure that idols were immersed in the tank? For the last two years, local volunteers have been trying to encourage villagers to immerse the idols in the tank. 'We have some statistics; Around 70 per cent of idols are going into the immersion tank. The rest are still going into the lake,' added Desai.
On the request of the organisation, a few eminent Marathi actors like Anand Ingle, Parna Pethe, Pratima Kulkarni, Suhas Paranjpe, Umesh Jagtap, and the late Atul Parchure made video bites to appeal to villagers to immerse their idols only in the designated tank.
The organisation also removed the clay and encouraged a local idol maker to recycle it into another idol. 'He made some miniature small clay idols and earned around Rs 70,000 from that,' said Desai. 'Our petition in the NGT is based on the fact that the irrigation department and the district collector are the trustees of the water bodies and all the natural resources. As a trustee, they have to protect this natural wealth and take steps to conserve it, which they are not doing,' Desai further said.
There are eight tonnes of clay immersed in the lake. Desai said they are hoping that the irrigation department will take steps to stop further deterioration of the lake, and barricades and security personnel will be installed at the lake to prevent people from immersing idols in the water.
Dipanita Nath is interested in the climate crisis and sustainability. She has written extensively on social trends, heritage, theatre and startups. She has worked with major news organizations such as Hindustan Times, The Times of India and Mint. ... Read More