Let's celebrate this diwali as a "Green Diwali" by not creating any harm to the environment and to any humans. Do not burn crackers and make this Diwali a healthy, safe and prosperous one.
2. Festival of Celebration
ó Diwali the festival of lights brings fun
and togetherness.
ó For children fireworks new clothes and
sweets make this festival the most
eagerly awaited of the year.
ó Finally Diwali is a family festival. It
including kids, seniors or even your
Pets.
ó But ensure that the Festival of Lights
3. Safety Tips for all…..
ó All accidents due to fireworks occur as a result of
carelessness, negligence and ignorance.
ó But these can certainly be avoided by observing some
very simple precautions.All of us enjoy the pleasure of
light and sound but when disaster strikes the injured has
to bear the cross.
ó If you're going to set off fireworks at home this year,
please take a few minutes to read through the
guidelines.
4. Safety tips for Kids
“Never allow your kids to play with fireworks unattended”
ó Supervise children while they light fireworks. Make them light
fireworks outside the house
ó Keep flower pots and chakras on even flat ground while lighting them
ó Have them light up rockets only on open ground.
ó Ensure proper distance from the fireworks away at a distance while
they are lighting them. Have them hold sparklers away from the body
ó Make sure they are wearing closed footwear and closefitting clothes
of thick material instead of loose or flowing garments while lighting
fireworks
ó Keep a water bucket and burn ointment or aloe vera gel handy
ó Check the area before igniting fireworks to ensure that no
inflammable materials are near
ó Ensure they light only one firework at a time
ó Discard used fireworks in a bucket of water
5. Tips for Others
ó Store your fireworks safely:
ó In a closed box, somewhere cool and dry, out of
reach of children and animals and away from all
sources of heat, until the time they're needed.
ó Locked away is best. Don't keep the box under
6. Pets hate bangs and flashes
ó Pets get very frightened on fireworks night, so
keep all your pets indoor and close all the
curtains to make things calmer.
ó Remember it's not just your own fireworks that
cause distress, so you may have to have your pets
indoors on several nights when other displays are
taking place.
7. Watch what you wear
ó Loose clothing can very
easily catch fire, and should
not be worn near any fire or
fireworks.
ó Long dangly scarves can be
risky too.
ó If anyone's clothing does
catch fire, follow the rule:
Stop - Don't run.
ó Drop to the ground. Roll to
put out the flames.
8. One at a time please
ó Don't allow anyone else -
especially children - to do so
while your display is going on.
ó Let the fireworks off one at a
time (not lots at once) and don't
rush.
ó Light the tip of each firework at
arm's length, using fireworks
lighter or fuse wick. Stand well
back immediately.
9. Different fireworks mean different
hazards
ó Read the instructions on each one
carefully (by flashlight, never an
open flame) and follow them
properly.
ó Rockets, for instance, should be
launched from a rocket launcher,
not from a bottle.
ó Sparklers need careful handling -
light them one at a time at arm's
length.
ó Don't give one to any child under 5
years of age; and put each spent one
into a bucket of water as soon as
it's gone out.
10. No fooling
ó Putting fireworks in your
pocket is stupid and
dangerous.
ó Throwing fireworks at people
is stupid and dangerous and
illegal; it's a criminal offense to
do so.
ó Drinking alcohol presents an
added danger when there are
fireworks and bonfires around.
So don't drink during your
fireworks display.
11. Have you thought over it?
ó Unfortunately, in recent times Diwali
has lost its original connotation, and
now the celebration is mostly about
burning firecrackers.
ó People of India spend thousands of
rupees over the same without
realizing that this is affecting the
environment as well as the health of
individuals.
“Deepavali, where Deep means earthen
lamps and Avali means a string”
No Fireworks
12. Do you know it affects
environment?
ó Fire-crackers have Highly toxic heavy metals like
cadmium, lead, copper, manganese, zinc, sodium,
magnesium and potassium, Sulphates and phosphates,
nitrites and nitrates.
ó The smoke that emanates from crackers pollutes the air
as well as the environment
ó The smoke contains tiny metallic particles and produces
smog making air unfit to breathe
ó The Carbon Dioxide emitted while burning firecrackers
is a major cause for global warming.
ó Diwali also sees a great amount of non-biodegradable
dry waste in the form of papers, plastics and firework
covers causing soil pollution.
13. Noise Pollution
ó Noise is unwanted sound and measured in decibels
(dB).
ó Firecrackers produce sounds which are much higher in
decibels tolerable for the human ear.
ó During Diwali the decibel levels go up to 125 dB which
is equivalent to the noise produced by a military jet at
the time of take off.
ó The noise level allowed by the Government is only 55
dB during daytime and 45dB during night
14. Health effects…
ó The suspended particles in the air
because of burning firecrackers
cause allergic conditions to skin, eye,
throat and nose.
ó Diseases like Bronchitis and Asthma
get aggravated due to the suspended
particles
ó Children from the age of 6 to 16 are
more susceptible to breathing
problems because of the smoke.
ó The heavy metals used in the
firecrackers affects the lungs of
people causing permanent damage.
15. ó The Sulphur Dioxide emanated
by the crackers also affects plant
life and their productivity.
ó Noise pollution results in
hearing loss, high blood
pressure, heart attack and sleep
disorder.
ó Unsafe practices also result in
many burn injuries which could
have been avoided.
ó Last but not the least, the effect
of firecrackers on birds and
animals is cataclysmic.Animals
like dogs and cats have a more
sensitive sense of hearing than
humans.
16. ó Let us re-establish the essence of Diwali by
being sensitive to the environment.
ó Diwali can be celebrated with earthen lamps,
sweets and togetherness.
ó It is time to go green this Diwali. Pollution-
crackers are also available, though very
expensive.
ó This year let us burn these crackers in small
quantities just for the spirit of Diwali.