Varta
← Back to stories

From ABP Live

Owned by ABP Group

'Firecrackers Purified Air, Killed Insects': RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat Defends Diwali Practices

'Firecrackers Purified Air, Killed Insects': RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat Defends Diwali Practices

What's behind this

Diwali 2026 celebrations across Indian cities were marked by severe pollution, excessive noise, fires, deaths and violence, prompting questions about civic responsibility and enforcement when existing rules repeatedly fail. In Delhi, air quality was already critically poor before the festival, with average PM2.5 levels in the week preceding Diwali reaching 236 µg/m³, about twice the 2025 level, according to the Centre for Science and Environment. The findings indicate that firecrackers and stubble burning exacerbate an existing air‑quality crisis.

AI-generated overview from 2 outlets. It summarises their reporting and adds no reporting of its own.

RSS excerpt

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat has claimed that firecrackers used in earlier times were not made from chemicals and helped kill insects and purify the atmosphere, arguing that traditional Diwali practices had a scientific basis. Speaking at a Diwali event organised by the…

Coverage arrived over 45 hours. First from The Assam Tribune, latest from ABP Live.

High Corroboration 7 news outlets reporting

How this event was covered

First reported by The Assam Tribune at 08:41 UTC on 10 Nov.

Coverage ran into a second day.

Across 1 desk: india.

All 7 newsrooms, and who owns them

Compare all reporting outlets (7)

  2. 6 hours later
  4. 14 hours later
  6. 1 hour later
  8. 6 hours later
  10. 6 hours later
  12. 10 hours later
  13. ABP Live ABP Group Current article

    'Firecrackers Purified Air, Killed Insects': RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat Defends Diwali Practices

    Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat has claimed that firecrackers used in earlier times were not made from chemicals and helped kill insects and purify the atmosphere, arguing that traditional Diwali practices had a scientific basis. Speaking at a Diwali event organised by the…

    Read at ABP Live ↗

Who did not run this

7 newsrooms ran this event. 26 others published in India recently and did not.

See which 26 newsrooms
  • ANI ANI Media
  • DT Next Daily Thanthi Group
  • Deccan Chronicle Deccan Chronicle Holdings
  • Deccan Herald The Printers (Mysore) Pvt. Ltd.
  • Frontline The Hindu Group (Kasturi & Sons)
  • Greater Kashmir GK Communications Pvt. Ltd.
  • India Today Living Media India
  • Kashmir Life Kashmir Life
  • Livemint HT Media Ltd.
  • Mathrubhumi English Mathrubhumi Printing & Publishing Co.
  • Organiser Bharatiya Prakashan (RSS)
  • Orissa Post Eastern Media Ltd (Sambad Group)
  • Rising Kashmir Rising Kashmir
  • Sabrang India Sabrang India
  • The Avenue Mail The Avenue Mail
  • The Better India
  • The Economic Times Bennett, Coleman & Co.
  • The Hindu Kasturi & Sons Ltd.
  • The Indian Express Indian Express Group
  • The National Herald The Associated Journals Ltd.
  • The New Indian Express Express Publications (Madurai) Ltd.
  • The Pioneer The Pioneer
  • The Shillong Times The Shillong Times
  • The Siasat Daily Siasat Daily
  • The South First The South First
  • The Tribune The Tribune Trust

Counted from the newest hundred stories in the section, not from every newsroom in India.

Read more news

See all latest stories →