Gurgaon residents to celebrate eco-friendly Diwali this year

Many have joined hands to say no to crackers and also to devise ways to celebrate an eco-friendly Diwali. Many are buying plants and saplings to distribute it to their friends and family members.

The Supreme Court ban and awareness campaigns on the ill-effects of bursting firecrackers seem to have left a deep impression on Gurgaon dwellers as residents of several condominiums and sectors have decided to celebrate a pollution-free Diwali.

Sameera Satija, a resident of Sector 14, is gifting plants to her friends and family members. (Parveen Kumar/HT Photo)

Many have joined hands to say no to crackers and also to devise ways to celebrate an eco-friendly Diwali. Many are buying plants and saplings to distribute it to their friends and family members.

Neha Tandon of South City-2 said, “For this Diwali, I have bought pencils made from recycled paper that also has a seed in them. Also, I have bought fountain pens made of bamboo and colour pencils made of recycled paper.”

Another resident, Navita Sharma, said, “I am gifting my parents and in-laws potted plants, some of which I made myself and some that I bought from nurseries. I want this Diwali to be an eco-friendly Diwali.”

These new ways to celebrate Diwali come at a time when increasing pollution level is taking a toll on city residents, as respiratory problems and infections have increased manifold over the last few years.

Residents said the change in approach — to gift each other lamps, candles and jute bags — is to preserve their health by ensuring minimum pollution.

The Supreme Court on October 9 banned the sale and purchase of firecrackers while the Punjab and Haryana high court on October 13 ordered a ban on the bursting of firecrackers except for three hours on October 19, between 6.30pm and 9.30pm, in Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh.

Nidhi Sharma Malhotra, a resident of Sushant Lok-3, said, “I bought a new planter from a roadside vendor for myself, to make his and my Diwali happier. Also, I bought bamboo items and other green items for friends and family along with traditional Diwali gifts to spread a green message.”

Some residents were of the opinion that celebrating Diwali without crackers should become the regular trend.

Sameera Satija of Sector 14 is going eco-friendly this year and said that she intends to continue the practice in the future as well. She said that any such measures that can be taken up must be made into a regular practice.

“I have bought planters as home decors and am gifting the same. I have stocked up on it so that I can gift it along with diyas to people who visit us on the festival. I will also gift it to all my friends. I have also bought seed pencils, which are made of used paper pulp that is biodegradable and has seeds behind them,” said Satija.

Shampa Moitra, a resident of South City-1, said, “My boys wanted to adopt plants this Diwali, so we bought a few. My elder son has adopted a Syngonium and the younger one has adopted an aloe vera plant.” Parents said they are also engaging the children into house cleaning, painting and decoration this year to divert their minds from crackers.