environment
Air quality in Delhi and other north Indian cities often falls to “severe” levels around Diwali, when firecrackers add to pollution from stubble burning, traffic and weather. Courts have ordered bans or restrictions in Delhi-NCR in several years, allowing only less-polluting “green crackers” at times. Many people see firecrackers as part of festivals; enforcement of bans has been patchy.
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Health comes first when the air is already toxic.
Pollution spikes around Diwali send children, the elderly and people with asthma to hospital. One night of fireworks can push air quality to hazardous.
Firecracker smoke contains metals and particles harmful to health, and the noise and fire risks also cause injuries.
Many festivals and cities worldwide use laser shows or community displays instead of individual fireworks.
Bans target a tradition while bigger polluters go unchecked.
Firecrackers are a small, short-lived part of the problem compared with crop burning, vehicles, industry and construction dust.
Bans on festival traditions, enforced selectively, feel unfair to many and are widely ignored.
The firecracker industry, concentrated in Sivakasi, employs lakhs of workers whose livelihoods depend on it.
How much firecrackers add to pollution compared with other sources, and whether a ban is a fair burden on a festival tradition. Firecrackers cause sharp short spikes; crop burning and vehicles cause more of the season’s pollution overall.
