On Sunday, 9th October 2016, an accidental explosion at a fireworks godown at Vanur in Villupuram district claimed the lives of 5 workers, leaving 11 others seriously injured.
News such as this, on accidents in fireworks manufacturing units and their godowns, keep coming year on year. Political parties raise the issue of safety in these units and compensation to be paid to the families of victims and to those injured. Eventually, once the heat of the incident settles, no one really talks about it. And no one dares to debate the rationale behind using firecrackers to celebrate festivals and occasions because the right wing will term any such argument as ill will towards religious rituals and the left wing will say you cannot shut down fireworks manufacturing units because it will affect the livelihood of those employed in these units. But neither of them do not want to see the working conditions of workers in these units and the threats they pose to their health.
These workers are being constantly exposed to hazardous chemicals, and the particulates they breathe, day in and day out, is literally killing their health. And when accidents happen, they meet a traumatic end. Some even get brutally maimed. Life after such accidents leave the families of these workers seriously wrecked. All these things are happening because we want to enjoy the momentary pleasure of beholding the sight of flares going up the sky and hear the thuds, booms, and bangs that strangely appeal to our ears. But we alone are not responsible for these outcomes, there are some who want to capitalize on this desire of ours to erect fireworks manufacturing units, sale depots and retail outlets. Even the workers themselves are responsible for choosing a livelihood that is harmful to themselves and the society. But we legitimatize all the human errors within this demand-supply equation by painting bursting firecrackers as a justifiable form of social and religious celebration.
But what rationale can justify this practice? Whether it is for Diwali or New year, Marriages or Final rites, what irreplaceable outcome, bursting firecrackers is going to produce? After all, it is a man-made ritual absorbed within - but made to look as an inevitable part of - religious and social celebrations. It may offer a cocktail of momentary pleasure and competitive entertainment at the cost of species, human and environmental health. Other than that it offers no consumable or utilitarian value to human beings. On the contrary, we see that the high decibel noise firecrackers produce petrify infants, aged people and those diseased. The suddenness and intensity of firecrackers cause immense fear and trauma in birds and animals, which tend to lose their sense of direction and get displaced from their homes, habitats, and families, or meet a fatal end. We also candidly see how firecrackers add up to air pollution levels and result in a thick smog of obnoxious smoke. At the end of the day, it's we who are going to breathe them.
So, cumulatively, the mere existence of this industry is hurting a number of people. Workers in this industry need urgent rehabilitation, not just compensation when they get injured or killed. They should be migrated to safer jobs performed in a healthier work environment. For our part, we ought to know that our celebration should not end up as a curse for many.
We can always celebrate occasions and festivals in a number of other ways that do not pose a threat to fellow humans, other lives, and the environment. The best way indeed would be to share goodness among them and not hurt, anguish and pollution. The choice may not be a hard one to make if we can understand that the choice here is between 'justice for fellow beings' and 'momentary-guilt-filled pleasure'.