Eco-friendly Ganesh idols fetch Rs 5 crore for Gujarat clay artisans

Gandhinagar: More than 23,500 eco-friendly clay Ganesha idols made by 361 artisans were sold for around Rs 5 crore during a seven-day clay idol fair held across Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Surat, the Gujarat govt said on Monday.

The ‘Mati Murti Mela-2026’, organised from Sept 8 to 14, saw 23,542 idols sold after the govt supplied 186 tonnes of ready-to-use clay to registered artisans and provided free stalls with 100% subsidy.

Ahmedabad Haat in Vastrapur recorded the highest sales of over Rs 1.9 crore, while the Adajan venue in Surat registered the highest number of sales at 7,920 idols worth over Rs 1.1 crore, an official statement said.

The govt said that in order to promote the use of eco-friendly Ganesha idols, activities were also held at educational institutions and more than 84,000 students of schools and colleges from 10 districts participated in programmes to promote environmental awareness.

The statement claimed the clay artisan incentive scheme, launched in 2014-15, has helped reduce the use of plaster of Paris idols in the state.