Delhi’s temporary cracker ban has created a furore in Bengaluru. While most eco-conscious people understand the high levels of pollution caused by fire crackers, others are not willing to bite the bait.
Many people believe that bursting crackers is a mandatory part of the Diwali celebrations. While they do understand that bombs can cause noise and air pollution, they feel sparklers and flower pots add colour and zing to the festival and bring in an essence of light and prosperity. Diwali is a festival that one looks forward to all year long and the celebrations that ensues has a lot of significance in our lives. Advaita Srikant, a BBA Student says, “My memories of Diwali start and end with the sound and light of crackers. Crackers being a part and parcel of Diwali shouldn’t actually be banned but there can be regulations/limit with regard to its usage.I guess people focus on pollution around Diwali as generally you find an additional layer of dust and smoke in the atmosphere compared to usual during and after the celebrations.”
One incident was all that it took to incite such an alarming cause for worry. The capital’s smog incident last year have got people thinking twice. Namritha Murali, a graduate of Christ University and a resident of Delhi says, “The reason why it’s topical now and especially at this time around Diwali is because Delhi gets so much worse after Diwali. The pollution levels are already very alarming, but after Diwali it gets much worse and results in deaths of so many children and adults too. And it’s easy to burst crackers, but to bring that pollution levels down after Diwali takes months together and even then it is worse than the how it was prior to Diwali.”
The festival may not feel the same this year as compared to previous ones with fewer children running out on roads and hearing random bursts late into the night. With all the efforts that we take to ensure that there the festival is celebrated with caution, working out a ban is not something that will settle down well with the holiday spirit. Priyanjali Mittal, city-based blogger adds, “If you stop it entirely, people will find new ways to celebrate the festival they have been loving for ages and crackers have been important medium to celebrate it. The environment situation can only change when the society as a whole is determined to make a difference. We keep saying every individual who contributes to the well being of the environment is important but at the end it takes a society as a whole to make an actual impact to reduce something like environmental pollution.”
