New Delhi: Turning the divine into the mundane and yet the right thing to do? NGO Sampoorna certainly thinks so. So, the heavily embroidered borders of a lehenga worn by an idol in a temple becomes a tote bag. The shimmering zari of a goddess’ sari transforms into a bangle box. The bright silk dupatta of the idol turns into a lehenga choli for kids. Not, it’s not sacrilegious, just better than dumping the discarded material into the Yamuna or left to decay under a peepal tree.The National Green Tribunal, in its order in Jan 2015, prohibited throwing any kind of temple waste and pooja material or any other material like foodgrain, oil, etc., into the Yamuna except at a designated site. Despite this ban, many pooja discards end up in the river, adding to pollution. Sampoorna seems to have found divine inspiration on dealing with this problem.Sobha Vijender, who founded Sampoorna in 1993, said the NGO’s action represented a sustainable model emphasising the circular economy. “Every few months, the deities are adorned in new finery after a change in season or festivities like Janmashtami, Navratri and Diwali. They throw the old garments, which also contain plastic, in the river or discard them under a tree. Using these old fabrics, we make various products and jewellery, in the process reducing the river’s pollution.“Sampoorna collects old clothes of idols from people and temples through social media to give them a second avatar. Women associated with the NGO prepare sustainable items like baskets, table runners, key chains, jewellery, rakhis and torans from the collection. “It is estimated that there are eight lakh temples in the country, with around 49,000 of them in Delhi. We have launched a campaign to spread awareness across the country on recycling old clothes,” said Vijender.The NGO used to collect old clothes from residential societies to fabricate bags. “Once, we received two cartons of old clothes which had earlier adorned idols. After research, we made bags from those sacred cloth. We decided to give these sacred pieces of fabric a new purpose,” Vijender smiled.Kiran Dwivedi, a Sampoorna worker, said she came to the NGO over a decade ago to learn sewing. “I am happy that I work here now and am involved in the protection of the environment,” she said. While appreciating the efforts of Sampoorna, Sandhya Dixit, president of Balaji Temple, Prashant Vihar, said temple committees should ensure participation in this noble initiative.