Friday, the centre requested the Supreme Court to allow the sale and bursting of firecrackers in the city of Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) under stringent conditions and with control regulations. Tushar Mehta, the Solicitor General, brought the proposal to a bench of Chief Justice of India Bhushan R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran, stating the necessity to strike a balance between the right of people to celebrate festivals and the environmental and health conditions. It is already in the hearing process.
The proposal of the Centre stated that the manufacture, selling, and use of only green crackers, as the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) had mentioned, would be possible, with the usage of traditional joined crackers or laris prohibited. The government proposed to restrict the sales to traders with licenses and ban via e-commerce sites like Flipkart and Amazon in Delhi-NCR.
A timely limitation was also defined to minimize the impact of pollution. Fireworks would only be permitted during Diwali and other major festivals or between 8 pm and 10 pm. During Christmas and New Year’s Eve, the maximum window would be 11:55 pm to 12:30 am, whereas the Gurpurab celebrations would have a window of 1 hour in the morning and 1 hour in the evening. Weddings or other personal occasions could also be performed with the help of green crackers.
An effective monitoring and enforcement system was suggested. The manufacturer of firecrackers would be compelled to create QR codes per product, have a comprehensive record of the production and sales activities, and make sure that the emissions do not exceed the NEERI-approved limits. PESO and state pollution departments would make unannounced visits to manufacturing plants, warehouses, and shops. The breaches may result in a suspension of the license and an instant shutdown of business.
The Centre has also emphasized awareness campaigns among people to create awareness about approved crackers, health hazards of emissions, and reporting systems through applications like the Sameer App and Green Delhi App.
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