Artificial ponds used for immersion of idols

Noida/Gr Noida: To facilitate immersion of Maa Durga idols on Durga Puja, both the Noida and Greater Noida Industrial Development Authorities provided artificial ponds across the district for residents which were used for idol immersion ritual on Tuesday.

As per reports, the Noida Authority provided about 13 spots where ponds ranging from 40 ft to 100 ft dimension were dug up with depth of 5 ft. Two such artificial pond were developed near Spice Mall in Sector 25A, while other artificial ponds were located near the Ramlila grounds in Sector 46 and Sector 62, behind Shilp Haat in Sector 33, in A block of Sector 71, behind Ajnara Homes in Sector 121, behind the Hyde Park society in Sector 78, in front of the Civitech society in Sector 116, near Prateek Loreal in Sector 120. Other locations include one in Sector 105 in front of the judges' colony, one in Sector 135 and the Bird Sanctuary metro station in Sector 94.

The Noida authority made arrangements for digging artificial ponds, filled water using tankers and scheduled their immersions in a systematic way so that there was no chaos. This prevented a lot of pollution in Yamuna and reduced chaos of traffic jams on the immersion day.

"Residents in large number started gathering at these spots from early morning. They performed rituals and immersed idols of Maa Durga in these artificial ponds. It was a positive response received from their side while the Authority also made all the needful arrangements at these sites including crane and others. The immersion of debris and puja leftovers are segregated and taken to the landfill for treatment and disposal," said a senior officer of Noida authority.

In Greater Noida, the GNIDA provided similar locations in front of IEC College in sector Knowledge Park 1 and at green belt in front of Cherry County in Greater Noida west. Residents, meanwhile, have welcomed the move. "It's a good initiative as this will reduce water pollution of the river. It will save people from going all the way to Yamuna and Hindon river or other ponds. These ponds can also be used for Chath puja as well leading to less traffic chaos also," said Kartika Jaiswal, a resident of sector 19 in Noida.