Although firecrackers are an issue, there are other factors that contribute to air pollution as well.
Prohibiting firecrackers is a clumsy move.
As the country celebrated Diwali with firecrackers on Thursday and Friday, the Air Quality Index (AQI), a complicated measurement in a single unit of numerous pollutants in the atmosphere, was attentively monitored. This indicates the festival’s growing relevance and linkage. In the past, Diwali was celebrated all over India, including in the northern states, with lots of firecrackers to light up the night, but nobody was particularly concerned about air pollution. This is not to advocate going back in time, but rather to properly and seriously examine how firecrackers affect the air we breathe in light of the dense smog that covers practically every city and town in the nation, with Delhi NCR and Punjab-Haryana being the worst.
According to data from SAFAR-India, the morning following the firecracker celebrations, Delhi’s air quality fell to the “very poor” category at 362. The trend over the last ten years of the AQI increasing to dangerous levels following Diwali celebrations should raise concerns, even though this was worse than in 2022 when it was about 312. Despite the sea breeze purifying the air, Mumbai’s AQI, which was a modest 172 on Thursday afternoon, reached over 250–280 in several areas and 305 in Colaba. Even on Friday morning, haze was recorded in places like Varanasi, Haridwar, and Jaipur.
Days prior to Diwali celebrations, the governments of Delhi, Punjab, and Haryana restricted or outlawed firecrackers in an effort to take preventative action. Production, distribution, and possibly consumer purchase had already taken place, so it was too late. Restrictions must be implemented early in the annual cycle of firecrackers at the production-distribution stage itself, even though a total ban may be contentious. Additionally, the action backfired because Hindu right-wing organizations, who were quick to take offense, rebelled and started throwing more crackers.
Although they are an issue, firecrackers are not the only thing that pollutes the air. It is commonly known that a number of factors contribute to poor to extremely poor, even dangerously severe, air quality, including construction dust, industrial and vehicle emissions, burning wood and other materials as cooking fuel, and, to a lesser extent, stubble burning. These variables can be handled all year long and their contribution to poor air quality can be assessed; they don’t need to be addressed around Diwali.
It requires minimal work to limit industrial or construction emissions over the two days of Diwali in the interest of cleaner air if the data is accessible and governments take notice early in the year. Unfortunately, this strategy gets lost in the haze; outlawing firecrackers is a clumsy move that would undoubtedly irritate the right side.
Dr. Abhishek Verma
Author: This news is edited by: Abhishek Verma, (Editor, CANON TIMES)
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