In an internecine disagreement between different sections of Mumbai’s civic administration regarding an anti-firecracker advertisement, the actor Dia Mirza has been labelled anti-national by the city’s Mayor Ritu Tawde. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had released advertisements featuring Dia and other celebrities, including Madhuri Dixit and Ajinkya Rahane, in line with the Bombay High Court’s order last month that firecrackers be strictly prohibited year-round in certain public areas and silence zones. The mayor has taken umbrage against Dia specifically, claiming that the actor is anti-Hindu and anti-national (interchangeable terms in today’s India).
Deepavali is days away, and firecracker stalls have popped up all over the country. These can expect brisk business now, even though the Supreme Court of India is clear about the exact windows during which playing with them is allowed, and does not permit products without certain eco-friendlier certifications.
Culturally speaking, Deepavali and Diwali celebrations share the lighting of lamps as a common bond. It is a day on which evil is kept at bay through brightness in the form of literal and symbolic flames. While firecrackers have been featured in Deepavali celebrations, the noisy, noxious part of the festivities dates to less than a hundred years ago, after the Explosives Act was amended in 1940, thus enabling the mass production of fireworks. In and of themselves, firecrackers have nothing to do with patriotism.
Factually, firecrackers and fireworks are significantly harmful. They release toxic substances, driving the AQI into detrimental ranges, and causing immediate respiratory distress and long-term carcinogenic effects, among other dangers. Even so-called “green” crackers only reduce environmental pollution by around 30%. The noise pollution is no trivial matter: animals, the elderly, the infirm, children, and neurodivergent people can find it unbearable, and higher risks of pet disappearance and sudden-onset health crises are real.
The litter is mountainous, and the presence of contaminants means waste management is a serious concern. Last year, the Greater Chennai Corporation removed 60 metric tonnes of firecracker waste from the streets, and 6,000 personnel had to be specially deployed for this task. Much of this ends up in landfills. Tamil Nadu, where over 85% of India’s firecrackers are manufactured in Sivakasi, technically only mandates firecracker usage from
6 am-7 am and 7 pm-8 pm on the day of the festival itself. Only green crackers are allowed, and a 100 m radius of impermissibility applies around hospitals, educational institutions, and places of worship. Whether these protocols will be observed this year, or flouted as usual, remains to be seen.
Scientists, state administrators, activists, and sensible people all over the country easily understand why a city municipality may want to release a public awareness message discouraging the use of fireworks and firecrackers. Still, a person ought to be able to debate their use, weighing wanting to play with them against the damage caused, or outright disliking them, without either of these being regarded as so highly offensive. The health implications of widespread usage affect the entire nation. One would think that to consider these, and as Dia has done, advocate for reconsidering the practice, would be quite a pro-national thing to do.