Editorial: Remains of the day

CHENNAI: For those of us who were apprehensive about getting through Deepavali in an incident-free manner, the festival of lights passed without much heartache. Chennaiites did not disappoint in their contribution to air quality, which plummeted in the aftermath of the day and night-long fireworks. The metro was blanketed in a thick layer of haze on Monday, as the Central Pollution Control Board designated the city’s air quality index (AQI) at 256, which puts it in the poor category.

Per the ambient air quality monitoring stations, AQI hovered between 236 to 328 in five out of seven stations in the city. The National Air Monitoring Programme’s scale defines an AQI of 0-50 as good, 51-100 as satisfactory and 301 to 400 as very poor. The deterioration of air quality had a lot to do with people of the city running afoul of the TNPCB’s directions to burst crackers only during the allotted hours. As always, the revelry lasted throughout the better part of the day and night.

The Greater Chennai Police registered 581 cases in connection with violations of bursting crackers beyond the stipulated time. Around 19 cases were recorded for using fireworks that produced excessive noise as well. It would be unfair to presume that only Chennaiites threw caution to wind and celebrated Deepavali in the most over the top manner. In spite of campaigns carried out by eco-activists, students, and animal lovers, concerning the importance of going green this festive season, most pleas fell on deaf ears. And the world did take note.

India’s air quality made international headlines in the hours following the festival, as three cities in our country made it to the list of world’s 10 most polluted human settlements. New Delhi took the top spot with an AQI of 407, which is deemed hazardous, potent enough to cause respiratory ailments and breathing disorders. The national capital was followed by Mumbai which came sixth with an AQI of 157, which was followed by Kolkata that had an AQI of 154. The impact on the North Indian states is compounded every year ahead of the winter when cold air tends to trap pollutants including vehicular smoke, industrial and construction dust, as well as agricultural waste/stubble burning.

The celebrations also resulted in cities across India throwing up incredible amounts of firecracker waste, which had to be mopped by the hapless conservancy workers a day after. Here in Chennai, close to 200 metric tonnes of firecracker waste was collected across the city over a period of three days. The Corporation workers’ task had been cut out for them, considering the possibility of rains that was expected in the city from Tuesday onwards. The one silver lining was the fact that the quantum of waste collected this year was comparatively lesser than the spoils from 2022, which was close to 275 metric tonnes over a period of five days.

Needless to say, there certainly are reasons (read environmental damage and air quality deterioration) for India to reconsider the ways in which it rings in the all important festive seasons. While spurring the tendency to spend certainly keeps the wheels of the economy moving, it seems counter-intuitive to allow one’s celebrations to add to the costs incurred by the exchequer.