Happy Diwali to all KW members - Are fireworks a problem?

[Raj]

Please enjoy the Fireworks and be safe, below is an article from an Indian newspapers which shows our neighbours here aren't the only ones complaining about the fireworks!

In recent years there has been a some criticism about the celebration of Deepavali in India. The most common reason is the noise pollution caused by crackers. Infants and aged people have a nightmarish experience because of the high levels of sound during Deepavali. Often sleep becomes impossible due to the celebrations continuting all through the night. The health problems associated with high noise levels include palpitation, blood vessel constriction, excess secretion of adrenaline and dilation of the pupil.

The noise due to crackers has a far more deleterious effect on animals than it has on humans, since animals have a much more sensitive sense of hearing than we do. Pets like dogs and cats as well as stray cattle in cities spend the Deepavali days in a state of daze and close to nervous breakdown. Voluntary and non-profit organizations like People for Animals (PFA) have been trying to educate the public about these issues.

It is unfortunate that some people treat Deepavali as an opportunity to show off their status or purchasing power. This leads to an "arms race" with the proliferation of crackers like 100-wala, 1000-wala and even 10000-wala (strings of 100, 1000 and 10000 crackers in a row respectively).

Recently there have been several governmental and legal efforts to combat the menace. The Supreme Court of India, observing that the "right to peaceful sleep is a fundamental right of the citizens", has banned crackers between the hours of 10 pm and 6 am during the Dasara and Diwali festivals. While strict enforcement of this ban is, of course, out of the question, the effect has nevertheless been very positive. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has banned fire-crackers with a decibel level of more than 125 at a distance of 4 meters from the bursting point. There have also been state-level efforts to ban 1000-walas and "hydrogen bombs" (which are extremely loud). The cumulative effect of these actions has been a noticeable reduction of noise during Deepavali.

Air pollution is the other major harmful effect of the festival. Smog is extremely common on the morning after Deepavali. This is not only harmful to inhale but also makes driving a nightmare.

Finally, there is the issue of child labor in the fireworks industry whose main center is Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu. Children as young as three or four (the average is 10-14) work in mind-numbingly adverse conditions, and about a third of them are in debt bondage. There is some public awareness of this problem, but the issue of child labor in India is larger than the context of Deepavali alone, and is unlikely to go away anytime soon.

Of course fireworks are a big part of celebrations but do you think it has got out of hand and is now more of a nuisance? Of course the best solution is to attend the many fireworks displays including our own held by the SKLPC.