Notwithstanding the fierce public campaigns run every year by environmentalist groups and NGOs exhorting citizens to celebrate Deepavali in an eco-friendly manner, the bitter truth is this: Nothing is going to change until the Central government takes a call on amending the Explosives Act, 1884 and/or Explosives Rules, 2008, by explicitly banning the manufacture of a category of fire-crackers which are duly certified for causing air and noise pollution above a permissible limit (“Pollution cloud hangs over northern cities after Deepavali”, Nov.1). A certified mechanism ought to be put in place and only low-intensity and non-hazardous fire-crackers be allowed for use on such festive occasions.
Hemant Kumar,
Ambala City, Haryana
