Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday said that her government will approach the Supreme Court seeking that green firecrackers be allowed on Diwali in the national capital, so as to “honour the sentiments” of citizens.
“Delhi’s problem [of air pollution] has its own significance and we are working to resolve it,” the Bharatiya Janata Party leader told mediapersons. “But for crores of religious people in Delhi and the country, Diwali is a very big festival that is connected to their emotions.”
The chief minister said that considering this, citizens should get permission to burst green crackers, “so that they can celebrate the festival well.”
Gupta said that the Delhi government is “fully committed to environmental protection and pollution control” and will assure the court that it follow its guidelines.
This year Diwali will be celebrated on October 21.
In April, the Supreme Court imposed a year-long ban on the manufacture, storage, sale and use of firecrackers in Delhi and adjoining areas that form the National Capital Region. The court had ruled that the “so-called green crackers” would not be exempt from the ban, citing a Union government report stating that their emissions were only 30% lower than those of conventional crackers.
Green firecrackers are less polluting than regular ones as they are made with modified formulations and do not contain certain harmful elements such as lithium, arsenic, barium and lead.
On September 25, the Supreme Court allowed green crackers to be manufactured in the Delhi-National Capital Region but underlined that their sale and storage within the region continued to be banned.
The ban on firecrackers in Delhi was introduced to curb the national capital’s severe winter pollution. Air quality deteriorates sharply in the colder months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. Stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, along with falling temperatures, decreased wind speeds and emissions from industries and coal-fired plants contribute to the problem.
Firecracker ban
On October 14, 2024, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee banned the production, storage, sale and use of all types of firecrackers in the national capital till January 1, 2025.
Despite this, firecrackers were lit across the city during Diwali festivities. On November 1, the morning after the festival, Delhi’s air pollution was recorded at 14 times the “safe” limit prescribed by the World Health Organization.
On November 4, the top court asked the Aam Aadmi Party government in power in Delhi at the time to consider a perpetual ban on firecrackers, stating that the restriction was hardly implemented in the national capital during Diwali.
On December 19, the Delhi government told the court that it had imposed a complete ban on firecrackers throughout the year.
Also read: Why some Delhi residents leave the city during Diwali
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