Goa’s air quality is deteriorating by the day, and as we enter the festive season, including New Year celebrations, we must brace ourselves for a further deterioration due to fireworks. The bursting of firecrackers can push the Air Quality Index (AQI) to dangerously high levels, posing a serious health hazard to everyone, particularly the elderly, children and those with respiratory ailments.
The Goa Government must take proactive steps to ban fireworks, irrespective of the community or occasion involved. Public health and environmental protection must take precedence over celebrations. Goans, too, need to recognise the growing threat of air pollution and understand why banning fireworks is the need of the hour.
Arwin Mesquita, Colva
