<\/p>\n
Diwali or Deepavali, also known as the festival of lights, is a major festival in India and is celebrated with great enthusiasm and fervour. Celebrated on the 14th day of the Kartik month as per the Hindu Lunar calendar, it is believed that on this day Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya after an exile of 14 years. The people of Ayodhya celebrated the joyous occasion of the return of their favourite Lord by cleaning their house, distributing sweets and lighting the houses with earthen diyas. Thus the name Deepavali, where Deep means earthen lamps and avali means a string. Over the years, firecrackers were also included in the celebrations.<\/p>\n
Read:<\/strong>\u00a010 ways to celebrate eco-friendly Diwali<\/a><\/p>\n Unfortunately, in recent times Diwali has lost its original connotation, and now the celebration is mostly about burning firecrackers. Firecrackers of different varieties are easily available in the market, and the people of India spend thousands of rupees over the same without realising that this is affecting the environment as well as the health of individuals. Here are a few ill effects of firecrackers which one should know about:<\/p>\n Firecrackers have the following constituents as per Bombay National History Society Laboratory, Mumbai:<\/p>\n \u2022 Highly toxic heavy metals like cadmium, lead, copper, manganese, zinc, sodium, magnesium and potassium. Noise is unwanted sound and measured in decibels (dB). It is indeed a dangerous pollutant which is hazardous to the environment. Firecrackers produce sounds which are much higher in decibels tolerable for the human ear. During Diwali the decibel levels go up to 125 dB which is equivalent to the noise produced by a military jet at the time of take off. The noise level allowed by the Government is only 55 dB during daytime and 45dB during night, but these limits are crossed by a great extent causing environmental hazards.<\/p>\n Diwali, a joyous occasion, has now become a source for ailments because of the following reasons:<\/p>\n \u2022 The suspended particles in the air because of burning firecrackers cause allergic conditions to skin, eye, throat and nose. Let us re-establish the essence of Diwali by being sensitive to the environment. Diwali can be celebrated with earthen lamps, sweets and togetherness. It is time to go green this Diwali. Pollution-free crackers are also available, though very expensive. This year let us burn these crackers in small quantities just for the spirit of Diwali. Communities can also opt for laser shows on Diwali evening. Instead of spending on firecrackers, the same money could be used to make some capital investment at home, or buy a book and new clothes. This Diwali let us spread the joy and celebrations to the under privileged by donating text books, new clothes and sponsoring a lavish meal.<\/p>\n Here is wishing everyone a Happy and a Green Diwali.<\/p>\n Related Links<\/strong> Diwali or Deepavali, also known as the festival of lights, is a major festival in India and is celebrated with great enthusiasm and fervour. Celebrated on the 14th day of the Kartik month as per the Hindu Lunar calendar, it is believed that on this day Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya after an exile […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2407,"featured_media":51008,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4148,3513,11315,5096,4474],"tags":[8459,8458,8464,8472,8460,8473],"class_list":{"0":"post-50969","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-events","8":"category-festival-and-celebration-cuisines","9":"category-india","10":"category-social-issues","11":"category-unusual-india","12":"tag-diwali-2017","13":"tag-diwali-celebration","14":"tag-diwali-gifts","15":"tag-diwali-in-india","16":"tag-eco-friendly-diwali","17":"tag-pollution-free-diwali"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50969","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2407"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50969"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50969\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":125425,"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50969\/revisions\/125425"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50969"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50969"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mapsofindia.com\/my-india\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50969"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Environmental Hazards<\/h3>\n
\n\u2022 Few of the aforesaid metals are in the form of nitrites and nitrates.
\n\u2022 Sulphates and phosphates
\nFor the layman, the following are the ways in which the aforesaid chemicals harm the environment:
\n\u2022 Barium, Cadmium, Sodium, Mercury, Nitrate and Nitrite are major air pollutants.
\n\u2022 The smoke that emanates from crackers pollutes the air as well as the environment because of the chemicals used in manufacturing them.
\n\u2022 The smoke contains tiny metallic particles and produces smog.
\n\u2022 The RSPM, Respirable Suspended Particulate Material level goes up during Diwali making the air unhealthy to breath.
\n\u2022 The Carbon Dioxide emitted while burning firecrackers is a major cause for global warming.
\n\u2022 Diwali also sees a great amount of non-biodegradable dry waste in the form of papers, plastics and firework covers causing soil pollution.
\n\u2022 Recent studies have shown that the chemical particles also contaminate the water bodies. They penetrate the soil and even result in the contamination of the ground water making it unfit for consumption.<\/p>\nNoise Pollution<\/h3>\n
Health Hazards<\/h3>\n
\n\u2022 Diseases like Bronchitis and Asthma get aggravated due to the suspended particles, Sulphur Dioxide, and Nitrogen Dioxide. In recent times, people suffering from these Chronic Pulmonary diseases have started taking refuge in hilly places or even hospitals.
\n\u2022 Children from the age of 6 to 16 are more susceptible to breathing problems because of the smoke.
\n\u2022 The heavy metals used in the firecrackers will leave a residue in the lungs of people causing permanent damage.
\n\u2022 The Sulphur Dioxide emanated by the crackers also affects plant life and their productivity.
\n\u2022 The Carbon Monoxide produced in the process of burning crackers hampers the Hemoglobin content in the blood causing it to malfunction in the process of transporting oxygen in the blood. Thus various parts of the body suffer from oxygen deprivation.
\n\u2022 Noise pollution results in hearing loss, high blood pressure, heart attack and sleep disorder.
\n\u2022 The chemicals used in the firecrackers also indirectly result in stomach disorders, for if the hands are not washed properly before intake of food it may cause food poisoning.
\n\u2022 Unsafe practices also result in many burn injuries which could have been avoided.
\n\u2022 The firecrackers are normally handmade and the people making them are exposed to harmful chemicals which result in irreversible health damage. Most of the factories employ young children making it even more appalling.
\n\u2022 Last but not the least, the effect of firecrackers on birds and animals is cataclysmic. Animals like dogs and cats have a more sensitive sense of hearing than humans. According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), a non-profit organisation, awareness should be created for the masses.
\nKeeping in mind the aforesaid negative impacts, the Honourable Supreme Court of India has issued certain guidelines:
\n\u2022 Manufacture, sale and use of only green crackers.
\n\u2022 Bursting of fire crackers only between 8.00 PM to 10.00 PM.
\n\u2022 No online purchasing of crackers.<\/p>\nAn Eco-friendly Diwali<\/h3>\n
\nAbout Diwali<\/a>
\nFree Download Diwali Wallpapers and Images<\/a>
\nSpread Happiness and Peace on Diwali<\/a>
\nDiwali Aarti<\/a>
\nCelebration of Diwali<\/a>
\nEssay on Diwali for students and teachers<\/a>
\nDiwali Gifts Ideas<\/a>
\nHistory of Diwali<\/a>
\nAbout Diwali Puja<\/a>
\n Story of Diwali<\/a>
\nLakshmi Puja Timings on Diwali <\/a>
\nRevival of Earthen Diyas this Diwali<\/a>
\nMore Offers on Cars and Bikes This Diwali<\/a>
\nE-commerce Set To Soar This Diwali<\/a>
\nAbout Dhanteras<\/a>
\nDhanteras And Diwali Expectations<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"