Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation has announced Clean & Green Diwali awards for residential and gated communities who celebrate Diwali without crackers. The measure was initiated to minimise air pollution in the city from crackers during the festival season.

“The ambient air quality in the city has deteriorated over the years and we want to check the increasing pollution levels here. The awards are aimed at encouraging citizens to celebrate a pollution-free Diwali,” said a corporation official.

“Initially, most of the residential and gated communities in the city were unenthusiastic about the proposal, but we hope that some of them would go green during Diwali and then the concept could catch people’s imagination in the coming years,” said R Ravindran, of Resident Awareness Association of Coimbatore.

Those communities celebrating a green Diwali can share their stories on WhatsApp number 819000200.