New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday heard the petition of the Rekha government seeking permission to release green firecrackers in the capital Delhi this Diwali. The decision has been reserved after hearing the arguments of both sides. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta urged the Supreme Court to allow the use of green firecrackers in Delhi-NCR from 8 pm to 10 pm on the day of Diwali.
Solicitor General Mehta requested the court to take a balanced approach on the matter, in which he also laid some conditions to ensure that only green firecrackers approved by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) are manufactured and sold. Supreme Court Chief Justice B. R. Gawai and Justice K. The matter was heard by a bench headed by Vinod Chandran. The court, after hearing the arguments of both sides, has reserved its order. In such a situation, the final decision on whether the sale and use of green firecrackers will be allowed on Diwali will be announced later.
Delhi’s Rekha government had filed a petition in the Supreme Court to allow people to release green crackers on this Diwali. Delhi minister Kapil Mishra on Friday said that he has requested the court to allow Delhiites to celebrate Diwali with green firecrackers while following all the prescribed standards of pollution control. Under the leadership of Chief Minister Gupta, the Delhi government has resolved that the capital’s Diwali should traditionally be celebrated with enthusiasm with the lighting of lamps in every home and the echo of firecrackers echoing in the sky.
“At the same time, Delhi’s Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa said, “”Delhi is the capital of the country, it is not right to be deprived of firecrackers on Diwali.” But firecrackers should be lit with some restrictions. We would like to allow firecrackers for one hour in the morning and one hour in the evening. We want only green crackers to go. All religions should celebrate their faith by following the rules.
Recently, Chief Minister Gupta had said that the Delhi government will request the Supreme Court for permission to burst green crackers on Diwali this year. Minister Kapil Mishra says that Diwali is the biggest religious festival of Indian culture. Keeping in mind the sentiments of crores of people of Delhi, the government has requested the Supreme Court to allow green firecrackers to be set off in Delhi during the festival. He said that the Delhi government is serious about curbing pollution and protecting the environment.
In fact, there have been incidents and decisions for many years regarding the ban on firecrackers during Diwali in Delhi, mainly due to increasing air pollution in the capital. Early stages and the Supreme Court intervened in 2017. The Supreme Court began considering a ban on the sale of firecrackers in Delhi-NCR, after which the impact of firecrackers on air quality was investigated. Then in 2018, the Supreme Court banned traditional firecrackers and allowed the sale and use of only “green firecrackers” (less polluting firecrackers).
The widespread restriction began in 2020. In the year 2020-2021, the Delhi government started imposing a complete ban on the production, storage, sale and use of all types of firecrackers, even green firecrackers, in view of the severe pollution in winter. This restriction is usually announced in September or October and remains in effect until January 1. The widespread ban was imposed due to the difficulty of distinguishing between green firecrackers and traditional firecrackers.
Subsequently, a similar complete ban was announced before Diwali in 2022, 2023, 2024 every year. The restriction applies to the production, storage, sale and online delivery and use of firecrackers. Several petitions were filed in the Supreme Court over the ban on firecrackers, in which firecracker manufacturers challenged the ban. The Supreme Court has then observed that the issue of pollution is not limited to Delhi only, and if the ban is to be imposed, it should be considered for implementation across the country and not only in Delhi-NCR. The court has also considered the feasibility of allowing green firecrackers, but the ban continued in Delhi-NCR in view of the pollution level.
What is green cracker
Green firecrackers are eco-friendly crackers designed to cause less pollution than traditional firecrackers. These have been developed primarily by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research – National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-NEERI). In short, green crackers provide a safe option to reduce air and noise pollution on festivals like Diwali, although they are not completely pollution-free.
