#Right2Breathe: No Crackers This Diwali, Say Virat Kohli, Arjun Kapoor

New Delhi: Go Green is the theme this Diwali. One without crackers, pollution, where celebrations are about lights, gifts and festivities without choking. From cricketer Virat Kohli to actors Arjun Kapoor, Rahul Khanna, Dia Mirza, Juhi Chawla and VJ Rannvijay Singha, everyone is posting messages asking their fans to celebrate without harming the environment this Diwali.

Cricket Captain Virat Kohli said, “This Diwali, everyone should address a bigger problem of Air Pollution. I urge everyone not to burst any cracker, cause noise and air pollution. Air Pollution is dangerous for lot of people, especially children who are suffering on daily basis because the pollution levels shoot up after bursting crackers. Celebrate Diwali with family members and loved ones, but, make sure you are really sensitive to the environment and the health of people around you.”

Also Read: For Swachh Air, Pledge To Go Toxic Free This Diwali

https://twitter.com/TeamVirat/status/916321429771169796

Actor Arjun Kapoor in his message said, “Celebrate Diwali, but be kind to the environment, people, animals around. Bursting crackers cause a lot of harm to the environment, so this Diwali, spread the love but with your smile and not with crackers.”

On the other hand, actor Rahul Khanna shared a picture on his Instagram and captioned it, “I’m going to light up this festive season with diyas, not fireworks. Join me in saying NO to noise & pollution. Let’s celebrate a safe.”

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The Roadies anchor, Rannvijay Singha said, “Light a diya, and say no to cracker. Don’t wait for authorities or anyone else to do it for you. We owe it to ourselves, our children, to our families, neighbours, we owe it to our environment, so let’s do it together, do it ourselves by not bursting crackers this year.”

https://twitter.com/RannvijaySingha/status/916413159807754240

In light of the poor air quality prevailing in the country, the 36-year-old actor Dia Mirza urged people to celebrate a cracker free Diwali and said, “Can we make informed choices for the sake of health?’

Crackers apart, replacing plastic during the festivity is another green step people have to take, highlighting this aspect, Juhi Chawla said, “Spotted earth bottles, bought earthen Tawas & black pots to make dahi in. Haven’t you replaced your plastic already!?”

Wishing his fans on the occasion of Diwali, the 38-year-old actor Emraan Hashmi asked his fans to celebrate an eco-friendly Diwali. He wrote, “Hoping that the dazzling lights of Diwali bring you peace, prosperity and good health. Have an eco-friendly and noise free Diwali guys.”

Filmmaker Karan Johar wished Diwali to his fans twitter and urged them to not burst crackers this Diwali. He said, “Happy Diwali… All my love to you and yours! Keep it safe… Cracker free and full of love.”

Actress Richa Chadda, who along with Kalki Koechlin recently released a rap that suggest alternatives to firecrackers, also did a video on “How to survive Diwali”, and shared it on twitter and captioned it, “There is more to Diwali and smoke.”

Actor Arshad Warsi also came out in support of a pollution free Diwali and tweeted, “Happy noiseless, pollution free Diwali, full of love, warmth & light, to fill up your life….”

Actor John Abhraham was also seen supporting a cracker free Diwali. “Bursting crackers during Diwali is bad not just for the environment, but also your own health. The smoke, noise and pollution does so much harm to our surroundings, to animals and to our body. While some may believe that crackers are the only way to celebrate Diwali, there is so much more one can do,” he said at an event.

Apart from the environment, it is the animals who suffer a lot because of crackers and pollution and actor Harshvardhan Rane took this into consideration and tweeted, “Met this dude in the midst of Ladakh mountains, he will celebrate a peaceful Diwali. Dudes in ur vicinty also deserve a peaceful one.

Also Read: Celebrate Waste-Free Diwali: Top 5 Home Décor Ideas To Brighten Up Your Home

Last year, after Diwali, air pollution levels in many cities of India shot up dangerously with air quality index in many areas touching the mark of 200–500, while the benchmark is 0-50. So this year, in Delhi, Supreme Court has put a ban on the sale of firecrackers till November 1, while in Maharashtra the Bombay High Court has put a blanket ban on the sale of firecrackers in residential areas. In Chhattisgarh, the government has banned only the use of firecrackers with higher decibels whereas in West Bengal, the ban in on firecrackers above the 90 decibel sound limit and after 10 pm bursting of fire crackers is not allowed. Though various steps and awareness campaigns have been taken up by the government across India, till people adopt the Go green message, Diwali runs the risk of becoming a festival of smoke than lights.