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Firecrackers worse than Cigarattes

Sawai Man Singh Medical College, Jaipur, are quoting to prove the extent of damage continued exposure to emission from firecrackers can have on our health.

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Firecrackers can be more dangerous than cigarettes. This isn’t some madman’s rant, but proven studies which doctors at the premier institution, Sawai Man Singh Medical College, Jaipur, are quoting to prove the extent of damage continued exposure to emission from firecrackers can have on our health.

Firecrackers, say doctors, have carbon and sulphur and they produce a range of gases, leave a number of chemicals as residue that act as colouring agent, reducing agent, oxidizer, stabilizer and binder. The colours contain sulphides for the glitter effect, aluminum for white, barium nitrate for green, lithium for red, copper for blue and strontium for purple.

“A typical cigarette generates 140ug/m2 units pm 2.5 of certain pollutant in a regular-sized room. On the contrary, firecrackers can generate 20 to 200 times of toxic pollutants in same closed environment,” Dr Narendra Khippal, professor, institute of respiratory diseases, SMS Medical College said. “For example one Anar (flower pot) generates 4800 ug/m units which is equivalent to the emission of 30 cigarettes. Similarly, one ground spinner generates 9,500 ug/m units equivalent to 60 cigarettes,” he added. The worst is the black serpentine crackers that the kids are fond of. One serpentine cracker (snake) generates 64,000 ug/m units equivalent to 450 cigarettes.

As per doctors, it is like smoking 5 to 15 cigarettes a day. Chemicals in the air are so dense that one can feel them on lips. When firecrackers are burst, these chemicals are released into the air, reducing air quality drastically. To make matters worse, Diwali usually takes place in October or November when many cities in northern India face fog. The gases released from the firecrackers remain suspended in this fog and increase the level of pollution exponentially.

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