App for a green Ganeshotsav

MUMBAI: This Ganeshotsav, a mobile phone application, will help you track the best pandals in the city, find the nearest spots for immersing idols and teach you

MUMBAI: This Ganeshotsav, a mobile phone application, will help you track the best pandals in the city, find the nearest spots for immersing idols and teach you how to make your own environmentally friendly idols.

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Launched last year by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, Eco Bappa was developed by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) and ecofriendlyganesha.com. Available on Android and iPhones, it has been upgraded for this Ganeshotsav with several new features.

“With a growing level of awareness over the past seven years about celebrating an eco-friendly Ganesh festival, we decided to incorporate all necessary information on one portal that can be accessed by — all at the touch of their smartphone screens,” said Sanjay Bhuskute, public relations officer, MPCB. “It’s perhaps the first mobile app in India which contains ways to celebrate any festival in an environmentally responsible way.”

Initially available just in Marathi, the app now has an English version too. There have been almost 900 downloads from Google Play Store and Apple iStore. “The prime feature of the app allows citizens to access the closest artificial immersion spot from their home. After consultation with the civic body, we incorporated a database of artificial immersions sites from all 24 wards across Mumbai and directions to reach them,” said Pratik Jadhav, a Ghatkopar-based green enthusiast and founder of ecofriendlyganesha.com.

The new features include a ‘group chat’ option that provides live notifications from app developers and citizens, informing users about choked traffic junctions, popular pandals, alternate driving routes, locations of eco-friendly idols and suggestions on how to celebrate the festival at home.

The app can access pre-recorded videos and YouTube links of popular pandals. “We have developed these new features in a way similar to how we get feeds through other social media applications,” said Aniket Khade, who developed the app along with Siddhesh Chavan. “Steps to celebrate specific rituals during the festival can be followed in real-time through the app.”

Apart from cities in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, residents of Pune, Aurangabad and Raigad can use the features on the app.