Diwali 2020: How to celebrate festival of lights with eco-friendly alternatives like diyas, natural rangoli

Diwali, the festival of lights, is one of the more significant festivals celebrated in India. Often considered to be the symbolic victory of light over darkness, Diwali or Deepawali sees people declutter their living and work spaces and decorate it with flowers, diyas or earthen lamps and rangolis. This year, Diwali will be celebrated on 14 November. As per the Hindu calendar, the festival of lights fall on Amavasya or new moon on the 15th day of the Kartik month. Another important aspect of Diwali is the bursting of crackers. And even though the festivities are the mainstay of India’s Rs 5,000-crore fireworks industry, it leads to surge in air pollution due to the materials used to manufacture them. This has led to several states and Union Territories imposing a complete ban on all forms of firecrackers. The ban comes as experts warn that worsening air quality, due to smoke and pollutants from bursting firecrackers could be detrimental to the health of COVID-19 patients. Here are ways in which you can celebrate Diwali in an eco-friendly manner: 1) Save electricity The lot of energy gets wasted in lighting electronic lights during the festival. A more eco-friendly way of celebrating could be through the lighting of diyas and decorating one’s house and office with flowers, rangolis or LED lamps and lights. 2) Reduce plastic use Diwali sees a lot of shopping, which naturally means a lot of plastic bags. One way of ensuring an eco-friendly festivities is by saying no to plastic bags. Since rangoli is an integral part of Diwali , another way of ensuring an eco-friendly celebration is by adorning homes with rangoli made from rice flour or even flowers and pulses. 4) Use clay diyas Instead of buying plastic diyas, one can always purchase clay diyas from the potter. This not only is an eco-friendly alternative but also helps in bringing a smile on the face of the potter. 5) Use green crackers If you really want to burst crackers, you can opt for purchasing green crackers which have a smaller shell size and are produced using lesser harmful materials and include additives that reduce emissions by suppressing dust. They also do not contain banned chemicals like lithium arsenic, barium and lead.