The North District Police have registered three cases under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, for violations involving the sale, storage, and transportation of Plaster of Paris (PoP) Ganesh idols, which are banned in Goa due to their harmful environmental impact.
The first case was registered on Monday, August 26, at Colvale Police Station following a complaint by Varsha Parab, Deputy Collector and Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) of Mapusa. The complaint was lodged against Vasudev Chari of Sirsaim, Bardez, who was allegedly found displaying and stocking PoP idols for sale in violation of the law.
The second case was filed at Mandrem Police Station after a complaint by Shivprasad Naik, Deputy Collector and SDM of Pernem, against unidentified persons who illegally removed PoP idols from a shop sealed for breaching environmental regulations. The act amounted to defiance of official orders issued by the competent authority.
The third case was registered at Mopa Airport Police Station on the basis of a complaint by PSI Swapnil Kinalkar against Shripad Patil of Kolhapur. Patil was intercepted at the Patradevi check post while transporting five POP idols in a vehicle (MH-09-EM-9366). Both the idols and the vehicle were seized under a formal panchanama.
Investigations in all three cases are underway.
Superintendent of Police, North Goa, Rahul Gupta, IPS, said “Investigations are in progress in all three cases. The North District Police reaffirm their commitment to strict enforcement of environmental protection laws and caution the public against dealing in PoP idols, which are banned in Goa due to their adverse ecological impact.”