Not all crackers spread pollution and the debate on fireworks should be balanced, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s general secretary Suresh ‘Bhaiyyaji’ Joshi said on Saturday, in response to a Supreme Court ban on the sale of firecrackers in the National Capital Region during Diwali.
A shopkeeper waits for customers at his firecracker shop in New Delhi on October 9. (AFP)
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Responding to a question at the end of a two-day RSS working committee meet, Joshi said no “extreme” decision should be taken about Diwali, which will be celebrated on October 19 this year.
“We have been saying there should be no pollution and environment should be protected. We are not against a ban on pollution-creating crackers. But this doesn’t mean all crackers come under this category”, he said.
“This festival of joy has been being celebrated in our society for such a long time. We light earthen lamps. Tomorrow some will say there are problems with earthen lamps also. So there should be a debate in a balanced way,” he added.
The Supreme Court’s ban on the sale of crackers has received a lukewarm response, with many saying the industry will be badly hit and that fireworks were an integral part of the celebrations of the Hindu festival. But environmentalists have welcomed the decision, saying the ban will help improve the quality of air in the Capital.
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.
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