Ditching Crackers, This Punjab Village to Go Green With Saplings This Diwali!

As the popular saying goes, we often forget that it is from our children that we have borrowed the earth and not as an inheritance from our ancestors.

While most in the country identify Diwali with bursting crackers and rockets through their growing years, what one fails to acknowledge is that it was at the expense of our environment and air that we had been doing so.

After last year’s winter turning a living nightmare for the folks in Delhi, we seem to have still not learnt our lesson.

When Supreme Court motioned the ban on crackers in Delhi and NCR, many had welcomed the move as a respite, but a more significant percentage expressed their displeasure, owning to clear ignorance or even apathy towards the harm crackers leave behind in the environment.

Amidst all the debate, one village in Punjab has decided to show the way by consciously opting out of bursting crackers and celebrate the festival in the most natural way—by planting saplings!

Sarai Jattan is a tiny a village in Sultanpur Lodhi tehsil of Kapurthala district. But its Panchayat and residents have showcased a rare consciousness towards the environment that most of us conveniently chose to be apathetic about.

Following informal discussions in the village, the resolution, which was moved by sarpanch Charanjit Singh Dhillon, was given the green flag during the general meeting held on October 10, with unanimous consent amidst the villagers.

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“People understand that crackers are causing worst type of pollution and one just needs to make some efforts to make them agree to the initiative. There is a consensus but we still feel that even if the majority of villagers stay away from crackers barring some children, we shall be successful in our endeavour,” the 28-year-old sarpanch told Times of India.

In the resolution, it also states that the panchayat and villagers will be planting saplings during the festival to spread awareness and keep a tab on pollution. And if you think the resolution has dampened the spirit of the kids and youngsters in the village, you will be surprised with the level of responsibility displayed by them.

“Though we enjoy bursting crackers but we also realize that pollution has increased and we also have to do our bit by staying away from crackers,” said Raminder Singh, a student of Class XI.

Kudos to the panchayat and villagers of Sarai Jattan, who have indeed set an example by going green, this Diwali!

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