Firecracker ban doesn’t stop Diwali going off with a bang
By Sagarika Ranjan, Sankar C. G., Shikha Kumar, Shraddha Uchil, Srimoyee Lahiri
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| An increase in the price of firecrackers did not deter people from celebrating Diwali with a bang. |
BANGALORE (Nov. 29)—Rohit Shetty bought a lot more firecrackers this Diwali than he has the last few years. Like many Karnatakans, he is unfazed by the Karnataka High Court’s recent ban on setting off firecrackers in public places.
“Diwali is the one festival that my family looks forward to every year,” Shetty, a chartered accountant practicing privately in Bangalore, told The SoftCopy. He said he and his family are very enthusiastic about Diwali celebrations and spend a lot of money on firecrackers every year.
“These bans keep happening, but for my children and me, the celebrations would not be the same without firecrackers,” Shetty said.
If you walk down the streets during Diwali, the Festival of Lights, you will see families letting off firecrackers left, right and center. This is because even though the Supreme Court ordered that crackers may not be detonated in public places between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., the government has yet to define exactly what spaces are “public.”
Business as usual
Just before Diwali this year, B.V. Puttegowda, a Bangalore-based advocate, filed a public interest litigation seeking a ban on firecracker use during the festival. The Karnataka High Court in October directed the state to follow the Supreme Court’s order, keeping in mind the noise and air pollution caused by pyrotechnic devices.
In a 2007 directive, the Supreme Court restricted the use of firecrackers and loudspeakers. With noise pollution being an increasing cause for concern in India, fireworks that produce noise of more than 90 decibels measured at a distance of five kilometers from the point of bursting were prohibited.
This Diwali, AECS Layout in east Bangalore recorded a sound level of 85 decibels—the highest in the city during the festival. Pollution levels also rise by 6-10 percent every Diwali due to the increased levels of nitrous oxide and sulphur dioxide released by fireworks.
In spite of these hiccups, for firecracker retailers, business continued as usual. Retailers in Bangalore told The SoftCopy that the prices of firecrackers have been rising steadily over the years. A box of flowerpot fireworks that cost Rs. 40 last year now costs Rs. 55. The prices of rockets, seen by many as a Diwali essential, have increased from Rs. 400 to Rs. 600.
Despite the price rises, sales have not dipped. Madan Kumar, proprietor of Sri Chakravarti Traders in Old Madras Road, east Bangalore, said his sales have increased by 15 percent over last year’s.
“The High Court ban has not affected sales, and neither has the price hike. In fact, people have now started buying crackers for occasions other than Diwali as well,” Kumar said.
This price hikes don’t seem to have dampened people’s festive spirit. Dhrubojyoti Lahiri, a techie working in Bangalore, spent nearly Rs. 3,000 on firecrackers this year.
“I know the prices have gone up, but I don’t mind spending a little more. We spend on expensive gifts like dried fruits, so why not on crackers?” he said.
Most retailers in Bangalore buy crackers from the Sivakashi Cracker Bazaar in Yelahanka New Town, north Bangalore. Minakshi, the sales executive of the bazaar, said there has been a decline of 25 percent in sales, while the cost of production has increased by 25 percent.
“This led to an overall loss of 50 percent points compared to 2010,” Minakshi said.
Sales of other fireworks boosted
However, an interesting contradiction was observed between the sales figures of the cracker bazaar and other retailers in the city.
Ms. Sushma of Lakshmi Enterprises, a cracker retail outlet at Ramamurthynagar said her shop saw an increase of 30-40 percent in sales this year. She pointed out that the ban was only on a few noisy crackers such as chocolate bombs, chain crackers, loose crackers, kali patka, dhani patka, 7 shot, and rocket bombs.
“The ban on these certain crackers has boosted the sale of other crackers like sparklers and flowerpots, leading to increased profits,” Sushma said.
As one of the biggest festivals in the country, Diwali has always held great cultural significance for Indians. Firecrackers are said to have been first used to mark the return of Lord Rama after 14 years of exile. The festival heralds the triumph of good over evil and of new beginnings.
On the eve of Diwali, Shetty was feeling upbeat as he walked out of the market with bags full of crackers.
“Diwali celebrations will always be incomplete without fireworks,” he said. “These bans and rising prices hold little ground when it comes to celebrating the festival in its full grandeur.”
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