This year’s Diwali, like previous ones, left the country’s major cities enveloped in polluting smog. Fireworks released enormous amounts of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and other pollutants in the air. This must stop
The festival of lights every year brings along a thick blanket of smog which envelopes every major city in India. It is invariably followed by meticulous media reports on specific details of the pollution parameters and a comparison with the previous year. We have all seen this being repeated year after year, yet nothing changes. Essentially, the unabated usage of crackers coupled with weather conditions such as wind speed and haze, throw up the same woeful air quality every year.
As per the Central Pollution Control Board, this year’s Diwali ensured that places such as Delhi surpassed last year’s pollution levels recorded during the festive season. So did the noise pollution in many parts of the capital. Harmful pollutants such as sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide during this period create havoc with the environment and the health of citizens. As the elderly population struggles to breathe during India’s most popular festival, we need to introspect on how we can alter our rituals and traditions in a manner that we lend some festive cheer to the environment along with the much needed relief to our senior citizens.
India can adopt many practices currently being followed in other countries to not only rein in the use of firecrackers but also stem the noise pollution. These best practices have evolved over a period of time and helped mitigate a whole host of related problems such as the unregulated fire cracker industry, the issue of child labour in these units, the utter disregard for fire safety in the manufacturing sector, and so on.
The Fourth of July in the US witnesses a dazzling display of fireworks, but the best part is that the fireworks are organised by the local administration for various counties and executed by certified pyro-technicians at a community venue for everyone to come and enjoy the display. This has several benefits. First, the quantum of fireworks per household comes down drastically; and so does the pollution. Second, the spirit of community involvement in social events is fostered. The US also imposes severe restrictions on private or household-level fireworks; in fact, in some places such as Denver, it is illegal. On the other hand, organisations in the US are leaving no stone unturned in an effort to green up pyrotechnics. Disney Inc has pioneered new technology that uses environmentally benign compressed air instead of gunpowder as the propellant for its pyrotechnic operations.
Indian environmental agencies and authorities can highlight the aftermath of Diwali as an apt justification to adopt few of the above practices. The authorities need to generate awareness to the effect that celebrating a festival cannot result in an environmentally irresponsible form of entertainment. Though fireworks cause far less overall pollution than industry and vehicle emissions, a mere form of entertainment cannot be a cultural symbol, especially given its negative environmental impact.
A concerning factor is that in spite of the availability of eco-friendly and smoke- free fire crackers, the general public is opting for the conventional fire crackers year after year. This speaks of a major gap in the efforts of the Government and its verbal claims towards protection of the environment. For instance, the smoke free eco-friendly variety of fire crackers have been around for quite some time, but the same have not made it to the fore-front of the mainstream commercial markets. These firecrackers are manufactured with recycled paper with lower quantities of chemicals and are based on a vacuum combustion method which produce colorful sparks with considerable sound and less smoke.
Environmental non-Government organisations and institutions have a pivotal role to play in promoting the concept of eco-friendly firecrackers, especially in major cities where the festival leaves days of smog in its wake. In addition to these, the festivities can be made more environmental-friendly with creative and exciting light and laser shows, instead of polluting fireworks.
As it is correctly said, “If the buying stops, the manufacturing will stop too.” The onus of caring for the environment begins at home. If an aware citizen decides to shun polluting ways of observing a festival, others will follow suit. The authorities backed by the Government have their task clearly cut out, and that is to ensure that highly toxic and smoke-intense fire crackers are completely banned from the markets. If all the stakeholders play their part, it would not be difficult to achieve the objective of ensuring a Green Diwali next year.