The day after Diwali in 2016 was just like a winter morning, except that it was not. The city was breathing poison and the life of the citizens of NCR was brought to a virtual standstill. The schools were shut and people were advised to stay indoors. The fall in air quality has also significantly impacted people’s lives. It can be said that the increase in cases of respiratory diseases like asthma, lung cancer and bronchitis can be attributed to the deplorable air quality.
Bursting firecrackers is, of course, not an essential element of celebrating festivals. It’s pretty evident that firecrackers are not healthy and we should raise a voice against them. At least humans can raise their voices. What about animals, who can’t speak for themselves?
There is no doubt that protecting citizens (including those who use fireworks) by making fireworks unavailable in the market in Delhi, would require the suspension of trade for a portion of the population. They may have acquired some stock for sale, but the lives of many citizens in comparison to the commercial interests of a few is more important. Apart from the air pollution fireworks cause, there is also the obvious extreme nuisance and noise that fireworks cause.
A just constitutional balance must be achieved and law to prioritise the lives of citizens must be made. It needs to be done because of the hazardous air conditions. Preserving our environment will require a lot more than stopping the fireworks business. It is easy to explain something like this to somebody who is not educated in comparison to someone who is educated but just does not want to understand.
Melting of glaciers and global warming is an angry letter from the environment. At this time when everyone is contributing to burning the planet, why shouldn’t we welcome the order from the Supreme Court?