The aftermath of fireworks prohibition on Diwali festival due to COVID-19 situation: A case study of the air quality of metropolitan cities of India

Abstract

Diwali is a festival of joy and happiness celebrated by displaying extensive fireworks across India for a week. In the present scenario of the COVID-19 pandemic, to curtail the concentration of air pollutants in the atmosphere for better health, a ban on fireworks during the Diwali festival was imposed by many State Governments of India. This study aimed to investigate the prohibition of fireworks on concentrations of air pollutants during the Diwali festival in metropolitan cities of India. For this study, eight major metropolitan cities- Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Jaipur and Lucknow and air pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, NOx, SO2 and O3) were taken and compared with the data of Diwali festival 2019. The analysis suggested that PM2.5, PM10, NOx, SO2, which were released from the bursting of firecrackers, were reduced on Diwali days in all the eight cities in 2020 in comparison to Diwali day of 2019. On the other hand, O3 was increased because of a reduction in NO concentration, which decreased the intake of O3. Overall, the ban improved the air quality of the different cities across India.