During Deepavali celebrations this year, over sixty individuals, primarily children aged between 8 and 14, were hospitalized in Bhopal. Their injuries stemmed from the use of hazardous calcium carbide guns, an official confirmed on Thursday, October 23, 2025.
While none of the injuries are life-threatening, some victims have unfortunately suffered permanent vision loss, and several others sustained severe facial burns.
Bhopal’s Chief Medical Health Officer (CMHO), Manish Sharma, emphasized the extreme danger posed by these carbide pipe guns. He stated, “Carbide pipe guns are very dangerous. The 60 people injured by the use of these guns are still being treated in hospitals in the State capital. All are safe.” Patients are being cared for at institutions including Seva Sadan Hospital, Hamidia Hospital, JP Hospital, and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
These perilous guns, simple to construct using a gas lighter, a plastic pipe, and calcium carbide, saw widespread use during this Deepavali. An official explained that the calcium carbide reacts with water to produce acetylene gas, which then ignites explosively when exposed to a spark.
Medical experts warn that the small plastic fragments, acting like shrapnel, are ejected from the pipe with force, causing deep lacerations and severe damage to various body parts, particularly the eyes, face, and skin.
On the day after Deepavali, Bhopal city alone reported over 150 cases of injuries linked to carbide guns. While many were treated and discharged after immediate first aid, a significant number required ongoing care.
Currently, a dedicated team of doctors at AIIMS is working diligently to restore the eyesight of a 12-year-old child. Additionally, Hamidia Hospital is treating approximately ten children, including two other young patients, for severe injuries.
Heart-wrenching accounts from the families of 14-year-old Hemant Panthi and 15-year-old Aris, both undergoing treatment at Hamidia Hospital, highlight the public’s outrage. They criticized the authorities for allowing these dangerous devices to be available and called for an immediate ban.
Aris’s father, Sarikh Khan, firmly stated, “Such guns should not be sold in the market in the first place.” He further urged, “Strict action should be taken against those who manufacture and sell these guns. Compensation should be provided to cover the children’s medical expenses.”
CMHO Sharma affirmed that the administration is actively pursuing legal action against those involved in the manufacturing and sale of carbide guns.
Despite Chief Minister Mohan Yadav’s clear directive on October 18, instructing district magistrates and police officers across the state to curb the sale of these pipe guns, the hazardous devices were regrettably sold without restraint throughout the market.