GHMC ensures dignified disposal of deity photos

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has begun a drive to collect the discarded pictures of deities and dispose them of after performing ritual final worship.

Titled, Project Udvasana, the initiative had its first ‘Sacred Collection Drive’ on Saturday in collaboration with the Hare Krishna Golden Temple, at the ISCKON temple, in Banajara Hills.

The initiative has been launched to provide citizens with a dignified, environmentally responsible, and organised system for retiring worshipped sacred items while ensuring responsible material recovery and eco-friendly recycling practices, a statement from GHMC informed.

The drive targets old deity photographs, damaged frames, worn out idols, and other sacred materials which are kept for years due to the absence of a proper, respectful disposal system. In several instances, such items are left near trees, water bodies, religious, or public spaces out of reverence, eventually becoming exposed to weather conditions and entering the municipal waste stream.

To address this issue, the GHMC introduced a structured process that combines traditional rituals, citizen participation, responsible material recovery, and environmentally conscious recycling practices.

Responding to the call by GHMC, devotees from across the city actively participated in the drive by bringing in old deity pictures, damaged frames and other sacred items used in worship, which are to be disposed of.

A total of 68 kg of divine items were collected during the drive, including worshipped photo frames and deity pictures, metal, wooden, stone, clay and plastic idols, and religious artefacts used at homes, offices and places of worship, from around 100 citizens.

Many items were also re-homed based on the interest from the citizens, after which an Udvasana Pooja was performed followed by systematic segregation, scientific dismantling, and responsible recycling.

The next drive under Project Udvasana will be organised at Sri Hanuman Temple in Yusufguda on June 13, the statement said, requesting citizens to bring their retired deity pictures and sacred items. The GHMC is also planning to further expand the initiative across additional locations in the city in the coming phases, followed by the introduction of a QR code based centrally coordinated system for the entire city. The statement has invited the religious institutions interested in partnering as collection centres to reach out via email ID: [email protected]