B’luru sees significant rise in Diwali firecracker injuries this year, cases go up to 40

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru

Around 40 cases of eye injuries due to firecracker bursts have been reported at a few ophthalmic hospitals in the city on Friday. State-run Minto Opthalmic Hospital has reported six more cases as of 2 pm on Friday. It reportedly admitted its third case on Thursday. Out of the six cases, four are grievous cases of which three are children and one is a 40 year-old-adult. An eight-year-old boy who lit a 'Belluli cracker' suffered a conjunctival laceration in the left eye, leading to a corneal epidefect. The boy is under treatment, doctors said. An update is awaited on his vision. A three year old boy who was a bystander to a firecracker burst, suffered bleeding from his right eye. Meanwhile, a 40-year-old male, who was also a bystander was brought into hospital with a corneal tear in his left eye. Sources say that he has been taken for surgery and an update on his vision is expected. At Sankara Eye Hospital, 12 new cases of firecracker related injuries have been reported as of 5 pm on Friday, out of which eight are pediatric and four are adult cases. All of them hail from in and around Whitefield.

On Thursday, the hospital reported two grievous cases and on Friday, it reported three, all kids aged under 10. One is a five-year-old child on whom the surgery has been done. The other is a 10-year-old onr whom surgery is yet to be done. “A three-year-old, two fiveyear olds, and two 10-yearolds are among the grievous cases being treated in the hospital,” a source told News Trail.

Narayana Nethralaya said the hospital witnessed a significant increase in firecracker-induced eye injuries. "From October 31 until 11 am on Friday, a total of 15 patients with firecracker- related eye injuries were reported," stated Dr Rohit Shetty, Chairman of Narayana Nethralaya. The injuries ranged from mild corneal abrasions to severe cases involving hyphema and epithelial defects, he said. Victoria Hospital reported four cases of burn injuries.

Cops record 56 cases of firecracker violations; The Bengaluru City Police (BCP) have registered 56 cases of violations of firecracker regulations set by the Supreme Court from October 31 to 5 pm on Friday, November 1. South East, Whitefield, and North Divisions have reported nine violation cases, while the North - East division tops with 19 cases. East Division reported 6 cases, while South had the least with 4 cases.