Effects of Holi festival on the Environment
No doubt Holi is one of the important festivals widely celebrated in India but it has some bad effects on the environment. Let’s read them one by one:
Air Pollution
As per tradition, in celebration of Holika Dahan i.e. bonfire which contribute to deforestation. During Holi festival Carbon Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide, Particulate matter levels go high which causes poor air quality. Also on this auspicious day participants also burst fireworks which release harmful gases and toxic substances into the air which can be measured by air quality monitoring.
Noise Pollution
Bursting firecrackers is not only release harmful gases in the air but also noise pollution. In this festival people like to celebrate with colours while dancing, they use loudspeakers, loud musical instruments that cause noise pollution. This type of noise pollution can be dangerous for infants and senior citizens.
Effects of harmful
Chemicals In earlier times Holi used to celebrate using organic colours made from flowers. But due to highly commercialization of Holi (& deforestation) festival many companies started manufacturing chemically prepared colours (Dyes) which are highly toxic. They are not readily degradable under natural conditions and cannot be removed by conventional wastewater treatment methods.
Water Pollution
Water pollution is considered as one of the major effects of Holi festival. Currently, in India all cities are facing water shortage. Considering this, people throw water buckets to each other, children throw water balloons at each other which is questionable. Also plastics bags, balloons can block the drainage system of the city.Also chemical colours mixed water can damage water bodies and soil where it is released in sea or river.
Health Effects of Chemical Colours
In recent study it is found that all types of chemically prepared colours are harmful to our health. It may contain Lead oxide, copper sulphate, Aluminium Bromide, Prussian blue, Mercury Sulphide etc. Many colours causes Asthma, skin irritation, rashes, swelling, allergy and it affects the eyes.
Alternate ways to celebrate Holi
Also we can reduce the size of “Holika Dahan” i.e. bonfire so that we can save some trees to reduce effects of Holi festival.
We can avoid using loudspeakers to reduce noise pollution so that infants and senior citizens have low impact on health.
To celebrate eco-friendly Holi first of all we need to make our colors eco-friendly. We can create colors by using fruits and flowers at home. Also we can distribute in our friends so that they won’t buy chemically prepared colours.
In recent years, India is facing drought in many cities. In that case playing Holi with water is a bad idea. Lot of water is wasted during Holi festival. We can reduce consumption of water by celebrating water less Holi i.e. avoid throwing plastic bags and balloons filled with water, use carpet before celebrate Holi as it becomes easier to clean floor hence minimal wastage of water.
