NEW DELHI: The Delhi government may have imposed a ban on the bursting of crackers on Diwali, but the busy burns wards of hospitals tell another story. Many city hospitals recorded an increase in the number of burn incidents related to Diwali from the previous year.
About 100 Diwali-related burn cases were brought to Safdarjung Hospital on Monday night. “As many as 97 such patients came to our emergency. The figure was 87 last year,” Dr BL Sherwal, medical superintendent, said. Of these, 61 injuries were related to crackers while 36 were induced by diyas or candles. “We admitted 14 patients with serious injuries,” he added.
At Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, 18 patients reached the emergency as against six cases last year, Dr Mahesh Mangal, chairman and head, the burns department, said. About 90 per cent of them suffered injuries on their hands while bursting anar.
“A child lost his ring finger as the anar burst in his hand. Two sustained severe injuries to their faces,” he added.
At AIIMS, 10 patients were admitted to ICU, among the 28 who reached the emergency, sources said.
Incidents reported at two key Delhi government hospitals were comparable to last year.
“We got 20 burns patients this time,” Dr Ritu Saxena, chief casualty medical officer, at Lok Nayak Hospital, said. Last year, the figure was 22, medical director Dr Suresh Kumar said. At Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, 23 people were treated for burns, of which four have been admitted, medical superintendent Dr Subhadh Giri said.
The rise in the number of cases took place despite the ban on firecrackers, the sound of which reverberated until past midnight. Over 200 calls about fire instances were received, Atul Garg, director, of Delhi Fire Service, said. This was 32 per cent more than last year when green crackers were allowed for a limited time.
Post-Diwali AQI at 303
The city saw the cleanest post-Diwali morning since 2016, even though the AQI hovered near the “very poor” range on the day of Diwali. An AQI of 303 was recorded on Tuesday.