Bandi Chhorh Divas & Diwali Celebrations (Golden Temple) Amritsar Punjab. Diwali at Golden Temple

Fewer Fireworks at Golden Temple this Diwali.

Bandi Chhorh Divas & Diwali Celebrations  (Golden Temple) Amritsar Punjab.

Diwali at Golden Temple

The Golden Temple, the holiest Sikh shrine, will see fewer fireworks this Diwali -- out of concern for the environment.

Environment activists and the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) had urged the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) to find alternatives to the traditional fireworks display.

In a letter to the SGPC president, PPCB chairman Kahan Singh Pannu sought help in controlling pollution in and around the shrine around Diwali.

Pannu, who earlier as Amritsar's deputy commissioner laid great emphasis on cleanliness, pointed out that pollution from the fireworks could damage heritage buildings of the shrine complex.

"It is the duty of (PPCB) to point out the pollution levels. We have asked SGPC to find some alternative way of celebrations," Pannu said.

However, the SGPC plans to go ahead with the fireworks display this Diwali also, albeit with some caution.

"We will only display fireworks which go high up in the air. We are concerned about the pollution at the ground level," a SGPC official told IANS here.

Fewer Fireworks at Golden Temple this Diwali.