After cracker ban defied, activists say many birds, stray animals hurt
New delhi: While it has now become evident that the firecracker ban imposed in the National Capital Region by the National Green Tribunal was largely defied, the fallout from the firecrackers in the last few days resulted in birds, pets and street animals across the NCR suffering.
Due to the loud noise produced by firecrackers, street dogs, and even pet dogs, get scared and run away, seeking shelter anywhere they can and eventually end up getting lost or displaced. When they land in other dogs' territory, it leads to fights and injuries.
These injuries and open wounds become maggot-infested and in the absence of any care, the animals die. Even if they manage to stay alive, they often get permanently displaced from their localities. If the people in the colony or community where the dog lives regularly feed it and go searching for it, there might be some chance for its survival, but more often than not, that is not the case.
Many welfare organisations also reported cases of animal cruelty, a firecracker being set off in a cow's mouth and a rocket having gone through a monkey's neck.
Abhinav Srrihan, the Managing Trustee of Fauna Police, said that firecrackers were being burst in abundance in Dwarka, Vasant Kunj, Chhatarpur and nearby areas. Nikhil Mahesh, Founder of Umeed for Animals Foundation concurred, "Firecrackers were openly getting sold in sector 56 HUDA market. How? Where was the police? The ban was a total misconception and was practically ineffective. I personally made a police complaint but all I got in reply was 'yes, yes we will come and see' but no one turned up even though I waited for an hour."
Almost every animal welfare activist agreed that imposing a ban would not yield the desired results. "If they had to ban crackers they should've done it before people stocked up for the festival. What's the purpose of a ban 2 days before Diwali? It's for show only. It should have been banned at least 15-30 days before so that sales would have stopped from the wholesalers. As for those who use crackers, well, policemen also live among us only. Someone I know in Janakpuri had filed a complaint but when the police showed up they said they had no way of finding out who was bursting crackers," Srrihan said.
Srrihan, whose welfare organisation also operates a helpline for birds said, "This time we got some calls about injured bats. Maybe due to rockets or other firecrackers, one of their wings get burnt. Owls, bats, nightjars, etc., come out to hunt for food during the night and since it was Diwali most of them must've gone hungry for the past 2-3 days. The loud noises and vibrations from firecrackers, bombs and other firecrackers scare and confuse birds, even raptors, in large numbers."
He went on, "A keen birdwatcher I know had a family of munia birds nesting in his garden. On Diwali, the mother passed away. But that hasn't killed just one bird, it has killed an entire generation, because it is more than likely that all the baby birds will die as well. Similar cases, happening almost definitely across the NCR (and country), lead to a large loss of fauna but unfortunately, no one cares."
