No break for cops,firemen,doctors

Having a similar story to tell,a Fire department official Mohinder Kumar said,“Fire is almost a synonym with Diwali and to have a festival of lights with no accident is almost an impossible thing.” Saying that a celebration or a holiday on Diwali is simply out of question as they are supposed to take extra measures to combat fire incidents,he recalled his early years when his children were small and they wanted him at home.

However,paramilitary force personnel follow a different strain of thought. Most of them do not have families to snatch a few special moments with them even on a festival day. A guard deployed on security of a local official said,“I can still enjoy a few festive moments with the family I’m working for.”

Believing in the duty-before-self adage,the doctors too have to remain away from their families during festivals. Saying,“duty is duty”,a leading surgeon,Dr Ranjana Agrawal,feels that serving patients is in itself the true celebration of Diwali. “The family is always there,but somebody has to come forward to help society in such situations,” she said.