Shillong: Construction debris and a blocked access ramp are stalling the Central Puja Committee’s post-immersion clean-up of the Wah Umkhrah river. The ongoing riverfront development project restricts machine access. JCB excavators cannot reach the water. These machines are essential for clearing waste left after the annual idol immersion rituals.
The CPC, which acts as the lead organization for Hindu groups in Meghalaya, handles this cleanup every year. They aim to return the river to its pre-immersion state. CPC president Naba Bhattacharjee said the task is an environmental duty. "As an environmentalist and president of the CPC, it is all the more incumbent upon me to ensure that this stretch of the river is restored to its condition prior to idol immersion," Bhattacharjee said.
Bhattacharjee has a long history with local river conservation. He filed a Public Interest Litigation back in 2014. That legal action targeted the National Green Tribunal and the Supreme Court to force protections for the Wah Umkhrah, Umshyrpi, and Umiam rivers. Despite the current mess and lack of site access, the committee vows to finish the work. The situation proves that riverfront building projects must not block routine environmental maintenance.
Comments