Mumbai, November 11, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Actor Gajraj Rao has expressed concern over the impact of firecracker smoke on public health following Diwali celebrations, urging people to understand that damage to their lungs can be irreversible.
The actor, recently seen in the streaming anthology Lust Stories 3, shared a sarcastic note on Instagram on Wednesday, criticising people’s attitude towards the health consequences of bursting firecrackers.
He wrote, “I don’t know why the public doesn’t understand this. Well, these are their own lungs, not the clothes that they buy from Myntra that they would exchange after a week”.
Rao turned off the comments section on his post.
Mumbai witnessed a deterioration in air quality after Diwali, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) reaching 171 on November 9, compared with 134 recorded on the day after Diwali last year. Eight monitoring locations entered the ‘poor’ category, with firecracker smoke identified as a major contributor to pollution.
Health experts have warned that exposure to fine particulate matter can cause respiratory irritation, cardiovascular complications and systemic inflammation, particularly among children and senior citizens.
The Mumbai Fire Brigade also reported a high number of fire-related emergencies. Between November 6 and 9, it received 282 fire calls, of which 200 were attributed to firecrackers. On November 8 alone, 137 of the 142 calls were cracker-related. One person died in a fire incident.
Following these incidents, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) banned rockets and aerial firecrackers across Mumbai until November 25.
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