Gujarat devotee raises awareness on food wastage; decorates Ganesha idol with food packets

Radhika Soni, a resident of Vadodara, Gujarat used 1008 biscuit packets and 850 rudrakshas to decorate her Ganesha idol this year. The idol of Lord Ganesha has been put up on a 5 feet tall Shivalinga.

The devotee through this act wanted to raise awareness regarding food wastage. Devotee Radhika Soni has used banners to make people aware of the plight of people fighting hunger.

What unique approach had the devotee inculcated?

Radhika Soni did something out of the box and it has everything to do with raising social awareness. On the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi, devotee Soni thought it was best to decorate her Ganesh idol with food packets. While speaking to ANI, Soni reasoned that her personal experiences ignited the idea of using food packets for the construction of the Ganesha idol. She told ANI, "My personal experience led to me doing this. During a function at my home, there was a lot of leftover food and we found someone for donation after great difficulty. We thought back then that food is not something to be wasted. One-thirds of total food is wasted every day worldwide." She stressed on her motive - 'Don't Waste Food time and again through her interaction

Ganesha idol placed on a 5 feet tall Shivalinga

Soni when asked to reveal details of this construction iterated that the idol of Lord Ganesha was installed on a tall Shivalinga which itself was 5 feet tall. Coming to the main attraction that is the Ganesha idol Soni claimed to news agency ANI that the idol was made out of biscuits packets. She said, "It has been made using 1,008 full packets of biscuits and 850 Rudrakshas. These packets of biscuits will be distributed among poor children after the immersion of the idol," 

Ganesh Chaturthi, a 10-day festival that begins on the fourth day of the Hindu lunisolar calendar month Bhadrapada, started on September 10 this year. People have been creating unique Ganesha idols across the country on this ten-day festival. While state governments issued guidelines and SOP's regarding restriction, Ganpati celebrations across the country remained lowkey.

Image: ANI