HYDERABAD: A recent National Green Tribunal (NGT) order mandating the use of green crackers in cities with ‘moderate’ pollution levels has left residents searching for this safer option.
Fireworks Dealers Association of Telangana was quick to reassure citizens that most crackers available this year would be green. “Our stock comes from Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu, where manufacturing has been happening on the lines of Supreme Court guidelines from a year before. Almost 70-80% of the city’s stock will be green this year,” said J Manik Rao representing the association.
Seconding this, Venugopal from Bhagwati Fireworks in Rajendranagar said, “All crackers we have are green this time. There are several options available that will be non-polluting.”
However, other experts cast doubt on the claim that the eco-friendly crackers were widely available. Shaik Basha, who heads National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) in Hyderabad said: “Green crackers might have permeated about 30% of the city market. With the NGT and apex court insisting on their use, there will be a slow transition to this eco-friendly option.”
Raghavendra Chowdary, a distributor, confirmed that only 25-30% of the stock available was green. “Every year a discussion starts around Diwali about the use of eco-friendly crackers. It would reduce the confusion if measures to be taken are made clear well in advance,” he said.
On the streets, several outlets did not have green crackers and did not even know what they mean. A seller in Begum Bazaar, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “Some bigger outlets have been able to purchase green crackers, but the stock available was limited even from manufacturers as there is a high demand for this.”
