HC lifts ban on PoP idol-making, but no immersion in sea, rivers
Mumbai: Bombay High Court on Monday lifted the ban on the manufacture of Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols and directed the state govt to take a policy decision on their immersion within three weeks.
Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne passed the order following the Central Pollution Control Board's expert committee on May 21 clarifying that CPCB's May 2020 revised guidelines banning manufacture and immersion of PoP idols "are always advisory in nature".
The committee opined that the making of PoP idols is not prohibited. It recommended that state govts may decide to allow immersion subject to conditions, including ensuring designated temporary artificial tanks/ponds for immersion of PoP idols.
However, immersion will not be allowed in natural water bodies such as rivers, lakes, ponds, and the sea.
Hence, the judges modified the Jan 30 order that directed strict enforcement of CPCB's ban and asked the state to take a decision on their immersion. The Jan 30 interim order was passed on a PIL by three activists and nine clay-based idol-makers to enforce CPCB's May 2020 ban. Petitions were also filed by associations of PoP idol-makers, saying the ban violates their fundamental rights, including the right to carry on trade.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
No dark spots, 10 years younger! Just take this from Watsons
URUHIME MOMOKO
Learn More
Undo
Advocate Uday Warunjikar and senior advocate S M Gorwadkar, for the petitioners, said the state govt appointed an expert committee whose report was sent to CPCB, which set up its own committee to look into the former's recommendations. With CPCB's clarification, they urged the HC to modify the Jan 30 order that "completely banned the manufacture and sale" of PoP idols and to direct the state to take a decision on their immersion.
Advocate general Birendra Saraf urged that at least for huge idols "that are 20 feet," some exemption be granted to immerse in natural water bodies, adding, "Some statues have become so much part of our culture..."
"Large size idols, you work out a solution. Because the court may not be an ideal place... One thing we are clear about is that we will not allow immersions in a natural water body,'' the CJ said.
The judges said it will be open to members of the petitioner association as well as other artisans to make PoP idols subject to compliance with the Sept 2012 Nagpur bench order, pointed out by senior advocate Mihir Desai for PIL petitioners, to put a red mark to distinguish PoP idols.
"However, it is directed that such idols shall not be immersed without leave of this court,'' they added, and posted the hearing on June 30.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
44 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Operation Sindoor: HC quashes rustication of Pune student arrested over ‘Pakistan Zindabad' post
MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Monday set aside the rustication order issued to a 19-year-old engineering student from Pune who was arrested last month for reposting a controversial social media message that ended with the phrase 'Pakistan Zindabad', in the context of the recent India-Pakistan military tensions after Operation Sindoor. The court held that the college's action violated the principles of natural justice, noting that the student had not been given an opportunity to be heard before the disciplinary action was taken. The student, represented by advocate Farhana Shah, had challenged the college's May 9 decision to rusticate her, calling it 'arbitrary and unlawful'. She was subsequently arrested, remanded to judicial custody, and denied bail by a Pune magistrate. According to her petition, the student had merely reshared an Instagram post originally published by 'Reformistan', a Pakistan-based account run by Dr Maarib Iftikhar, a doctor and writer. The petition stated that she reposted the content without any malicious intent. Following the backlash, she faced public outrage and casteist abuse both on and off campus. Though she deleted the post and issued an apology, the college proceeded with her expulsion, alleging that her actions were 'anti-national' and posed a threat to campus harmony. The institution also claimed that her post had damaged its reputation and that the rustication was necessary to preserve its ethos. On May 27, a division bench of Justices Gauri Godse and Somasekhar Sundaresan criticised the college's hasty decision. 'Somebody expresses something, and you want to ruin the life of a student? How can you rusticate?' the bench remarked. 'Prima facie, we find the rustication order was issued without giving the petitioner an opportunity to respond, and it requires to be suspended.' A separate bench of Justices Makarand S Karnik and Nitin R Borkar on Monday directed the college to revisit the matter and pass a fresh order in accordance with the law, ensuring the student is granted a fair hearing.
Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
HC lifts ban on manufacturing PoP idols, bars immersion in natural water bodies
MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Monday modified its January 2025 order that had imposed a blanket ban on the manufacture and sale of Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols. While the court has now allowed the manufacturing and sale of PoP idols to resume, it made it clear that such idols cannot be immersed in natural water bodies. A division bench of chief justice Alok Aradhe and justice Sandeep Marne was hearing a public interest litigation filed in view of the upcoming Ganesh festival, seeking enforcement of the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) revised guidelines that prohibit the manufacture of PoP idols. The petitioners argued that despite the CPCB's directives, many manufacturers continued to produce PoP idols in violation of the ban. On the other hand, a related writ petition contended that the CPCB guidelines infringed on artisans' fundamental right to livelihood by restricting their traditional trade. After considering the submissions, the court permitted the continued manufacture and sale of PoP idols, while prohibiting their immersion in natural water bodies without prior court permission. 'It will be open to the petitioners and artisans to make PoP idols. However, the same shall not be immersed in natural water bodies without the leave of the court,' the bench stated. Advocate general Birendra Saraf, appearing for the state, submitted that the government needed more time to take a final decision on idol immersions based on the CPCB's recommendations. The court accepted the request and posted the matter for further hearing on June 30. Reiterating its stand, the court said, 'We are clear that any PoP idol shall not be allowed to be immersed in a natural water body. Artificial water bodies can be created for such immersions.' The issue of PoP idol immersion has been under judicial scrutiny since 2003, when NGO Janhit Manch filed a PIL seeking a complete ban on immersions in natural water sources due to pollution concerns. In 2009, the CPCB formed a committee to draft guidelines aimed at curbing pollution during religious festivals. These were revised in 2020, banning the immersion of PoP idols in natural water bodies, but stopping short of banning their manufacture. A more recent report submitted on April 29 by the Rajiv Gandhi Science and Technology Commission (RGSTC)—a statutory body of the Maharashtra government—has added fresh perspective to the debate. Commissioned by Cultural Affairs minister Ashish Shelar, the report recommended conditional use of PoP idols. It proposed allowing PoP idols painted with eco-friendly paints to be immersed in large water bodies such as the sea and major rivers, provided these sites are located far from drinking water sources or animal habitats. The report also suggested exploring 'retrievable immersion' methods to enable the reuse of PoP idols.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Apple's India plans have two new threats: Trump and China's Xi
Apple Inc. and its main manufacturing contractor Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. are still betting on India. When Hon Hai — better known as Foxconn — revealed through an exchange filing last week that it was putting another $1.5 billion into its operations there, it will have calmed a few nerves in New Delhi. Worries about the future of Apple in the country had been set off by President Donald Trump , who said last month that he had told the company's Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook that 'I don't want you building in India.' This seemed to contradict hopes, shared by both Cupertino and New Delhi, that most iPhones for the US market would come from India by the end of 2026. Also Read: Trump wants Apple to stop moving iPhone production to India by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Moose Approaches Girl At Bus Stop In Leyte - Watch What Happens Happy in Shape Undo But on the ground, Apple's turn to the South Asian nation seems well-entrenched. Reports have emerged of a new Foxconn campus meant to house 30,000 employees — the largest such effort in India's recent history — and that another contract manufacturer, Tata Electronics , is now assembling the iPhone 16 in its South Indian plant. Yet CEOs and politicians may have begun to realize that the difficulties involved in shifting — or duplicating — an entire manufacturing ecosystem extend beyond placating Trump. This is a complex environment, and there are severe obstacles to moving it out of China. US politics is only one, though perhaps the loudest. Live Events Also Read: Foxconn to expand India focus with $1.5 billion investment Admittedly, Apple has had a lot of success in India already. That's why even Trump's talking about it. In just the last year, the value of its products manufactured there has jumped 60%, to $22 billion . Over $17 billion is exported; thanks to Apple, India's $38 billion of electronics exports now earn more than even its world-famous pharmaceutical sector. No other investment has produced anything near this scale of return. In fact, it may be the only success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pivot to industrial policy in the middle of his decade in power. This rare win happened because Apple and its suppliers were committed to moving production into India, and because both federal and state governments rewrote regulations and permissions to help them make the move. Politicians kept up this support, even when there might be a price to pay. After a border clash between China and India in 2020 that killed 20 of its soldiers, Indian officials restricted investment from Beijing. Those restrictions have slowly softened since then, primarily to ensure that Apple's contractors didn't get caught up in red tape. That experience should have served as a reminder to New Delhi that attracting an entire ecosystem needs three sets of players to cooperate: the companies, the destination market for their products, and the source geography. Apple and Foxconn might be on board; Trump and his tariffs might be managed — but what of China? A recent book by the former Financial Times journalist Patrick McGee argues that Apple in China, and Foxconn in particular, grew because American investors and engineers helped. That's no surprise. Any industrial power trains its competitors and successors. That's what Great Britain did for America centuries ago. The financiers, engineers and suppliers that make up an existing manufacturing ecosystem need to be willing and able to cooperate in creating a new one. They are generally well rewarded for it. Apple's contract manufacturers and component suppliers, large and small, in China might be willing to set up shop in India — after all, profits are profits wherever they are earned. Some of their engineers might be happy to move to supervise new shop floors. But, it turns out, Beijing might not permit that to happen. Many crucial, experienced employees have found themselves forbidden to travel to India and Southeast Asia. Apple and New Delhi have both tried to woo Trump, and make him accept the possibility that iPhones destined for the US will be made in India. But it appears that they may need to woo President Xi Jinping as well. Objectively, India's Apple-led mobile phone ecosystem is nowhere near challenging China's manufacturing dominance. China is, after all, the indispensable country not just for Apple, but for multiple companies struggling to shift production to India, Vietnam and elsewhere. But Beijing now appears to view Apple's India project as a risk — dangerous enough that a few barriers should be erected in its path. Trump, Apple, New Delhi, and Beijing appear agreed on Indian manufacturing's potential over the next few years, whatever the rest of us might think.
