A celebration of excesses

CHENNAI: It’s a saga that repeats every year. The Greater Chennai Corporation issues guidelines on how to celebrate Deepavali in a manner that is safe, responsible, and does not create a nuisance for the public.

And every year, unfailingly, the citizens do not disappoint with their antics in the run up to the festive eve and the day of the festival of lights.

The Corporation had asked people across the city to collect their own cracker waste and hand it over to sanitary workers the next day. The reason was that storm water drain work was going on at full speed, along with the desilting of canals.

The civic body’s apprehension was that paper waste from crackers could get mixed with rain water, get flushed into the drains and clog them, even before the monsoons were upon us.

However, a walk through any street in Chennai on Monday would have yielded the same results. Mounds of paper waste and remnants of firecrackers spilled over the edges of streets.

Far from setting an example and cleaning up their own neighbourhoods after a day and night of revelry, people had littered their avenues with packaging waste in unsightly heaps, even in areas where main roads had been dug up, essentially laying waste to the exercise of constructing drains before the rains.

The Corporation collected in excess of 200 metric tonnes of firecracker waste in the aftermath of Deepavali this year.

Also, all rules regarding the bursting of crackers in public places, and during the specific hours were flouted.

Most parts of the city were bathed in smog, thanks to the relentless pyrotechnics of the fireworks since Sunday night. Social media was also abuzz with complaints from owners of pet animals as well as residents with senior citizens and family members ailing from breathing issues.

The air quality index in Chennai saw it turning into the most polluted city in India with a maximum reading of 786, surpassing even that of New Delhi.

Such episodes of noise, air and light pollution were being witnessed, even after the government’s co-called mandate of shifting to green crackers as well as the ban on the 10,000-walah multi-shot crackers.

Come to think of it, there are so many grey areas when it comes to addressing pollution in all its forms. Firstly, the roll-out of garbage segregation has been a major issue in Chennai since time immemorial.

For a populace that still does not see the tangible benefits of garbage segregation and its long-term implications, expecting them to be on their law-abiding, best behaviour on a festive occasion might be pointless.

There is also the notion of enforcement. It must be asked whether the Corporation has the bandwidth to strictly enforce penalties on households that fail to demarcate their organic and non-organic waste.

Then of course, there is the question of personal, moral and civic agency. In most cases, we would not dare to call out a neighbour who might be flouting norms, whether it is in matters of garbage disposal or even sticking to the timings as far as the bursting of crackers is involved.

Such repeat episodes of violation of basic civic norms, reflects poorly on the judgement of not just those making the rules, but those who are expected to follow the rules.

The festival of lights should remain just that – a festival of bonhomie, good cheer and responsible revelry, not a polarising celebration of our excesses.