Bengaluru: Bowing to public pressure, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa did a U-turn Saturday on banning bursting of firecrackers this Deepavali. The change of mind comes just a day after the Chief Minister had vowed to protect Covid-19 patients and those susceptible to respiratory infections from smoke emanating from firecrackers.
In a tweet, he said “We received many suggestions after we proposed a ban on firecrackers this Deepavali. People should celebrate in a simple manner considering the safety of their children and themselves. I request people to burst only green crackers and celebrate the festival in a simple way.”
The new order allowed the sale of only green firecrackers.
Soon after Yediyurappa announced the decision to ban firecrackers, there was a major backlash on social media, where people trolled the BJP government for its decision and called the CM 'anti-Hindu'. This rattled Yediyurappa.
There was also an appeal from Tamil Nadu to reconsider the ban as firecracker units in the state are yet to recover from the economic downturn due to Covid lockdown.
Green crackers were developed by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI). These do not contain lithium, arsenic, lead and barium in them.
However, these only help in reducing particulate matter by about 40% and are not completely environment-friendly.
