New Delhi — The Dr Rajendra Prasad Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences at AIIMS Delhi has recorded a disturbing rise in severe ocular trauma during this year’s Diwali period. According to hospital officials, approximately 190 patients sought care for eye injuries — representing a jump of about 19 % compared with roughly 160 cases in the same timeframe last year.
Crucially, of these 190 cases, 18 to 20 were directly linked to the use of so-called “carbide guns” — improvised explosive devices built using calcium carbide and water, which pose a particularly dangerous form of fire-cracker-type injury.
What are carbide guns — and why the concern?
Carbide guns are roughly assembled devices, often made at home, that activate by mixing calcium carbide with water in a container (such as a PVC pipe). This reaction generates acetylene gas, which when burned or react causes a powerful blast, emitting shrapnel-like remains and emitting chemical fumes that can damage the eye.
The types of injuries seen at AIIMS this season highlights the seriousness of the problem:
- Roughly 44 % of the cases involved serious eye injuries, one of the most serious forms of eye suffering, which require immediate surgical interference.
- Around 17 % of patients had bilateral eye involvement (both eyes).
- The typical victims are young males, many under 20, and a large share of injuries occurred on the day of Diwali itself or shortly thereafter.
- Specialists warn that chemical and thermal damage from the blast and fumes — plus embedded foreign particles in the cornea — can result in permanent corneal opacification (clouding), irreversible vision loss, or lifelong disability.
Findings and hospital experience
- AIIMS recorded 190 ocular‐trauma patients in the Diwali period; last year’s figure was about 160.
- Among these, “18-20” were attributed to carbide guns.
- Approximately 44 % of all cases were serious eye injuries.
- The majority of injured addressed from the Delhi-NCR region (44 %), while the remaining other 56 % came from neighbouring states such as Uttar Pradesh and parts of Haryana.
- Many patients required urgent surgical intervention — hospital officials estimate 80-90 children or young people needed surgery this year.
- Clinical staff noted many instances where the device had been built or used after viewing social-media videos instructing how to assemble such devices — a trend that is particularly disturbing.
Doctors’ warnings and recommended action
Given the severity and trend of these injuries, the attending ophthalmologists at AIIMS have made several urgent recommendations:
- Immediate ban on manufacture, sale, purchase and possession of carbide-gun devices and similar unregulated fire-cracker substitutes.
- Tighter regulation and enforcement of fire-cracker laws, including certification regimes, sale restrictions and monitoring of online marketplaces and social media where such devices are advertised.
- Deployment of awareness campaigns — especially targeting children, adolescents, parents and schools — about the risks of such devices, safe alternatives, and the importance of protective eyewear and immediate first aid.
- Coordination across states: the hospital pointed out that while Delhi had restrictions in place for certified “green crackers”, the influx of uncertified devices from neighbouring states undermined those efforts.
Dr Radhika Tandon (Chief, RP Centre Ophthalmic Sciences) remarked: “Such explosions can cause devastating chemical and thermal damage to the ocular surface, leading to permanent corneal opacification and irreversible visual loss.”
Broader context & implications
The emergence of carbide-gun injuries marks a shift in fire-cracker-related ocular trauma:
- Historically used in some rural settings (for example, as bird/monkey scare devices), these carbide-based guns are now being repurposed during festivals — often among children or youth seeking more ‘powerful’ fire-works.
- Data from other states highlights the urgency. For example, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) warned two years ahead about the danger of calcium-carbide guns in Madhya Pradesh after youth sustained serious eye injuries.
- In Indore alone, the eye-injury figure linked to carbide guns rose to 40 in just a few days.
- The financial and emotional burden on injured families is substantial: treatment for chemical burns, corneal transplants, long‐term visual rehabilitation. The hospital notes the visual prognosis for many of these cases is “very guarded”.
Conclusion
The data from AIIMS Delhi this season highlight a pressing public-health concern: the misuse of homemade carbide-gun devices in festive celebrations is leading to serious, sometimes irreversible eye injuries — especially among children and youth. The rise in global visual/optical trauma (19 % increase) and the incidence of carbide-gun-specific cases highlights that, the rules and guidelines alone will not be sufficient to decrease this visual trauma percentage; corresponding execution, online marketplace monitoring, common awareness and safe alternatives are dangerous. Unless immediate action is taken, the risk of unnecessary blindness and lifelong disability among young people will continue to grow.