Layman Rants...: Diwali Firecrackers: A need of Tradition Or a habit that causes Destruction?

It is that time of the year again when the debate that otherwise lies silent all year round begins to make ‘noise’… Literally!

Whether we should or should not burst crackers in Diwali?

We all are aware of the fact that firecrackers are not good. There is NOT one justifiable reason for anyone to go about bursting crackers. They are not safe, they encourage child labor in life threatening circumstances, they terribly affect animals, they cause noise & air pollution and damage the environment in irreparable measure. Lastly, the biggest truth of all is that fir

ecrackers are definitely NOT- tradition or mythology.

“How can there be a Diwali without firecrackers??!!”, exclaimed one cousin of mine this weekend. This particular cousin is around 25. Is supposed to be from a milieu that is sensitive towards social and ecological changes happening today and… she is! Like she revolts when anyone litters the street, uses only eco friendly colors for Holi and is against the existence of ear shattering DJ’s at Ganpati. But when it comes to Diwali without firecrackers she stands in unison with all my uncles and older cousins who unanimously agree with her. Diwali matlab Fataka!!

So what is it about firecrackers that make so many of us go so defensive?

Now, I could never imagine Diwali without crackers until a few years back. I realized that was mostly because firecrackers were the only way I had known of celebrating Diwali. And the same is the case with so many of us. Had I or we been following a different set of routine through our childhood during this festive occasion, Do you think we would have missed it?

There are hence just two reasons to burst crackers today- Habit & Addiction. It is the very same logic that makes smokers smoke, alcoholic’s drink and shopaholics spend. Bursting firecrackers gives one a high, is an act of habit and hence despite knowing it’s harmful, one does not want to give it up!!!