Speak up Delhi- Every year, toxic air makes citizens gasp for breath after Diwali: Doctors

Diwali brings immeasurable excitement and celebratory spirit, it also brings with it respiratory problems. Though a festival of lights, Diwali has become a festival of crackers in the past few years creating deadly levels of air pollution. Crackers increase the concentration of dust and pollutants in the air, which get settled on the surrounding surfaces. These invisible yet harmful particles affect the environment and in turn, put our health at stake.

However, this year won't be the same. The Supreme Court's ban on firecrackers has come as a boon for those who suffer from respiratory illnesses as they hope that there will be less particulate matter in the air as compared to last year, when PM 2.5 (particles in the air with a diameter less than 2.5 micrometres) was recorded at 1,000 micrograms per cubic meter against the safe limit of 60. As the air quality continues to get worse with rising AQI level, DNA looks at how firecrackers light up the entire sky for a few moments but adversely affect our health.

"Every year, Diwali witnesses an increased number of patients with respiratory ailments especially elderly and children. There is an increased rush in OPDs and emergency. It has also been observed that patients with no past records of asthma may develop similar symptoms including wheezing," says Dr Karan Madan, Assistant Professor, Department of Pulmonary Medicine and Sleep Disorders, AIIMS.

Recently, the Union Minister of Union Minister for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Dr Harsh Vardhan, launched Asthma Manual for Schools in the National Capital. The need for such a manual to be distributed to young kids reveals the magnitude of the health problems caused by air pollution. According to reports, over 10 per cent of school-going children suffers from asthma. Poorly controlled asthma can lead to retardation of physical growth of a child.

Other than the manuals, some hospitals have also started special work to help save the environment from the toxic chemicals. For instance, AIIMS is conducting multiple studies on the effects of air pollution, including a study focused on the emergency admissions during Diwali. Maulana Azad is all set to start a new course on environmental health in its Department of Occupational and Environment Health to train doctors to deal with such problems.

"Last year we had conducted a study on the effects of air pollution during Diwali with 800 people. Three days after Diwali, each of the 800 people developed respiratory issues. We had also pulled out data from 22 government hospitals across the city. Out of these, 15 had reported a 50 per cent rise in the respiratory cases after Diwali," said Dr MK Daga, Member Secretary, Centre for Occupational and Environment Health.

VOICES

While citizens of Delhi feel the wrath of pollution, Faridabad has also been on the receiving end of pollution and it's ill-effects. However, the decision by the Supreme court has come as a relief for many and I expect residents of the National Capital to follow the orders. A clean Diwali would be far better than a one with crackers.
— Ranjeet Mishra, Faridabad

My grandfather suffers from Asthma. With an increase in pollution level making his condition worse, every year around Diwali we have to make several trips to the hospital. Residents need to make sure that they do not add more pollutants to the already polluted air.
— Anmol Narang, Janakpuri

It is sad to know that my grandchild will be going through an asthma manual in school. Instead of providing a good environment for the citizens, the government is handing over manuals to take precautions. Hope people learn their lessons and stop polluting the environment and create more troubles.
— Mohammad Rafiq, Wazirpur

We went shopping for green crackers, but we could not find any. After that, we decided to avoid crackers altogether for the sake of the environment and our future generations. This year, Diwali will be a festival of lights only, it will be celebrated exactly the way it was meant to be.
— Yogesh, Vasundhara Enclave

I have been sniffing and wheezing for the last few days. Last year, I was rushed to the hospital as I could not breathe on Diwali night. I am keeping my fingers crossed, hoping that the cracker menace will be taken care of this year and I don't have to make a trip to the hospital again.
— Sakshi Sharma, Punjabi Bagh

I hope that there are specialists who are trained in handling environmental health hazards. I am glad that the government hospitals are training their doctors in this. However, I believe that prevention is better than cure. The root of the problem — crackers — should be uprooted as soon as possible.
— Momina, Paschim Vihar

EXPERT SPEAK

Firecrackers, packed with chemicals like copper, zinc, lead, sodium, cadmium, magnesium and pollutants like oxides of sulfur and nitrogen, do not just cause pollution but also have adverse effects on health. The thick smoke generated even by crackers can affect the respiratory tract,especially of young children. It also causes congestion of throat and chest.
— Dr Vikas Maurya, Pulmonologist, Fortis Healthcare