Delhiites have a blast, some more than others, but use of firecrackers down

NEW DELHI: The people of Delhi apparently were in no mood on Diwali to adhere to the Supreme Court’s directives to burst only green crackers, that too between 8 and 10 at night. And yet, Wednesday was different from earlier celebrations because the people that TOI spoke to across the city seemed to believe that there was a considerable reduction in fireworks this season.
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“Every year, crackers start bursting by early evening and go on till the wee hours.This year, the deafening noise was missing and the roads the next morning were not as littered with the ashen remains of fireworks,” said Mukesh Rastogi, a resident of Shakarpur in east Delhi.
In west Delhi’s Peeragarhi, though, residents admitted the court’s orders had been openly flouted. “Children started bursting crackers from the afternoon and the din increased as the evening progressed. There wasn’t any big reduction in fireworks in west Delhi,” said Chander Pachauri at Nihal Vihar.
A similar situation prevailed in many areas. At Chittaranjan Park, Kalkaji and Govindpuri in south Delhi, the pyrotechnics began around 7pm and continued till 2am. “When I visited friends in Lajpat Nagar, Bhogal and Nizamuddin, I found the ban being similarly ignored,” said Prakash Bajaj, a Kalkaji resident. “Some sanitation workers I talked to in the morning said they had collected almost 20 kg of cracker remnants from around CR Park and Govindpuri.”
A resident of Janakpuri in west Delhi said he called up the police to complain about three men who were bursting crackers at 11.30pm. “However, two security guards told me that they had been approached by residents to inform them immediately if police came, so they could stop the fireworks and go into their houses,” he said.
There was minimal police presence in most residential areas across the capital, and in many cases they remained mute spectators to the loud celebrations.
The one silver lining in the city’s dismal disregard for the court’s attempt to rein in fireworks pollution was a reduction in the incendiary celebrations. Sushil Kumar of Janakpuri didn’t buy any crackers this year, though he did use what was left over from last year. Firecrackers were not so easily available in the market, and the fear of police swoops spooked the sellers who didn’t have stocks of green crackers. “The sellers couldn't set up stalls in the major markets, though late on Diwali evening, some did brisk business in the bylanes,” claimed Arpit Rana of Bijwasan.
Some areas were truly quieter on Diwali night. “It was a silent Diwali in Mayur Vihar Phase II. The citizens here accepted the ban on crackers in letter and spirit,” said Bobby Tumuly, an area resident. “A few kids did have fun, but that was for just 15 minutes, that too in the community park.” Jiten Kumar at Sarita Vihar too said the intensity was considerably down in his area. “I should know, because my dog suffers. This year he was mostly at peace,” Kumar said.
Raj Kumar Tarani, RWA general secretary, C-2 Block Janakpuri, also felt the anti-cracker drive got some results. “The area RWAs ordered guards not to permit anyone to burst crackers outside the regulatory timings,” he said. “People going on morning walks on Thursday found the air much cleaner than in earlier years.”
BS Vohra, who heads the East Delhi RWA Joint Front, said cracker use was visibly less in his locality of Krishna Nagar, but went on till 2am. "By next year, hopefully, we will have green crackers. This can only be achieved at the manufacturing level,” Vohra said.