Watch: Did India Celebrate a ‘Greener’ & ‘Safer’ Diwali This Year?

Decorative lights, earthen lamps and rangolis adorned houses as people across India celebrated Diwali on 27 October.

Nationa celebrated Diwali on Sunday, 27 October

(Photo: PTI)

Video Editor: Ashutosh Bharadwaj
Video Producer: Debayan Dutta

Decorative lights, earthen lamps and rangolis adorned buildings and dotted houses as people across the country celebrated Diwali on Sunday, 27 October, with much fanfare amid some restrictions on bursting firecrackers imposed by the Supreme Court.

As is the tradition, people did pujas at home, visited temples, exchanged sweets, gifts and greetings, with many taking the virtual route to convey their wishes too.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in Rajouri in Jammu and Kashmir, took the opportunity to spend Diwali with Indian Army personnel and said that he was celebrating with his ‘family’.

President Ram Nath Kovind greeted the people of the country and urged them to "try to bring happiness in the lives of those who are less fortunate and needy by lighting the lamp of love, care and sharing". Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu also extended Diwali wishes to the people.

However, there was no traditional exchange of sweets with Pakistani soldiers along the International Border and the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir or the Indo-Pak border in Punjab this year, officials said.

Despite the two-hour window on bursting of crackers with impunity, granted by the Supreme court in the National Capital Region, several people reported a violation of the rule. Most parts of Delhi-NCR woke up to ‘hazardous’ air quality with the AQI reaching 999 in some areas.

A new world record was created when over six lakh people lit up earthen lamps as part of the celebrations on the Saryu river bank in UP’s Ayodhya on Diwali eve.