Kids show way to a quieter Diwali

It is the children who enjoy the most during Diwali by bursting firecrackers. But for these 20-odd kids of Pali Hill area, this Diwali will be different—there will be no sound, only a light show. They have resolved not to burst loud crackers this year.

“Every Diwali, the trend would be that by now children would have started off with crackers and every evening it would be difficult for us to sit and hear people,” said Madhu Poplai, a resident of Cozi Hom in Pali Hill area.

“We want no noise pollution in our area. Our teachers told us not to burst loud crackers, so we will not be doing so,” said six-year-old Nikita Bajpai who has resolved not to burst anything other than sparklers, pots and chakri.

She will be joined by other children who have resolved the same for different reasons. “Besides pollution, there are pets that get scared and do not come out of the homes,” says 12-year-old Anokhi Bhardwaj. “My friend’s brother has couple of pets, so we will ensure that they are not harmed or scared in any way,” said Priyanka Punjabi, 10, a resident of the area.

These residents, until recently, would not hesitate in bursting loud crackers. “But now we feel that we should go slowly on crackers. Although we will not stop lighting them altogether, we will ensure that there is no noise pollution,” said Salian, another resident of the society. “I have never bothered how much money is spent on it either. This time we will burst only noiseless crackers,” added Salian.

While schools have done their bit, instructions from them were not the only clincher. Parents are also doing their bit to ensure a noiseless Diwali. For these 20-odd kids, most of them girls, their parents have organised rangoli and mehendi completions. “It is best thing that we can give to children rather than bursting and wasting our money,” said Meena Bharadwaj, mother of one of the kids.