Delhi Fire Services received around 152 calls on Diwali.
A total of around 152 calls for reporting fire were received by the Fire Service Department in the national capital on the occasion of Diwali, yesterday (Thursday), which is 25 per cent less than compared to last year, said Atul Garg, Director of Delhi Fire Services (DFS) on Friday.
"About 36 more fire calls were received post-midnight and all of them were in the category of 'normal' fire," Garg added.
"We have received 152 calls on Diwali this time which is 25 per cent less than last year. A total of four calls are suspected to be connected with firecrackers. No serious fire incident occurred on Diwali. No major fire calls have been received," he noted."People burst fewer firecrackers this year," he further stated.
As compared to previous years, there has been a slight fall in accident cases of fire triggered by the burning of crackers. According to data, while 271 fire incidents were registered in 2018, it came down to 205 last year. In 2019, there were 245 cases.
However, despite the ban on firecrackers, the national capital witnessed people bursting them on streets against the government's painstaking efforts and initiatives such as the 'Patakhe Nahi Diye Jalao' campaign.
The Fire Department was all set for the festival with a heavy deployment of fire personnel- nearly 2,800 staff and over 200 fire engines apart from deploying 30 fire units across the national capital.
Despite the ban, people in several areas of the national capital were seen burning firecrackers, thereby contributing to the already poor air quality in the national capital. Notably, the Delhi government had banned the bursting and sale of all firecrackers, including green crackers.
Following the celebrations of the festival, the air quality in various parts of the National Capital Region deteriorated as it entered the 'severe' category on Friday morning. As per the Ministry Earth Sciences' SAFAR-India application, the Air Quality Index (AQI) of Noida slipped to the 'severe' category.
(With agencies inputs)
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