BHOPAL: With the festival season approaching, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has directed district collectors and police chiefs to completely stop the use of carbide guns and lamps, warning that locally made devices pose a threat to human life.
During a virtual review meeting with divisional commissioners, district collectors, inspector generals of police and district police superintendents on Wednesday, Yadav said officials would be held responsible for law-and-order lapses in their districts. He also asked officials not to harass small traders while enforcing the rules and directed police to focus on women’s safety and crowded public places.
The instructions cover the sale of firecrackers, illegal storage of explosives and the sale of pipes and calcium carbide used to make the devices. Ambulances are to be stationed at key locations on Diwali night, nearby hospitals kept on alert, and fire engines and trained crews deployed at sensitive spots.
The measures follow a spate of injuries during Diwali last year. Bhopal’s Hamidia Hospital recorded dozens of eye injuries around the festival, while more than 150 people across the city sought treatment the day after Diwali. Many were discharged after first aid, while others were admitted with burns to their eyes, faces and skin. Most of the injured were children aged between eight and 14.
Hundreds were reportedly injured across the state, with hospitals in Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur and Gwalior treating young patients. Dozens of people with severe injuries, including damage to both eyes, underwent surgery.
Calcium carbide releases highly flammable acetylene gas when it comes into contact with water. A spark can ignite the gas, producing a loud bang. If the pipe bursts, fragments of plastic and metal can hit the user’s face. The gas can also burn the skin and eyes.
Families of the injured said the devices were easily available in local markets in the weeks before Diwali, sold openly at handcarts and roadside stalls alongside ordinary firecrackers. Several families demanded a ban and compensation for treatment costs.
A 2023 study by researchers at the ICMR-National Institute for Research in Environmental Health examined cases involving five young men in Khargone district who suffered eye injuries from carbide guns. The study recommended public awareness campaigns and restrictions on the widespread unlicensed sale of carbide guns and their raw materials, warning that such injuries could cause lasting vision loss.
Following the injuries during Diwali in 2025, the state banned the use and sale of carbide guns in October that year, and police arrested several sellers. The Public Health and Medical Education Department also issued an advisory on the risks.