The Delhi govt has banned the manufacture, storage, sale and use of firecrackers ahead of Diwali which will remain in place till January 2023.
According to Gopal Rai, Environment Minister, continuing with the ban, the restrictions on crackers will continue this year to tackle increasing air pollution. Besides, online sale and delivery will also be prohibited.
Taking to microblogging site Twitter, Rai said in a tweet in Hindi: “To protect people from the danger of pollution, the manufacture, storage, sale, and use of all types of firecrackers will be banned in Delhi this year, like previous years. This year, the online sale/delivery of firecrackers will also be banned. The ban will be in force till January 2023.”
Earlier this week, Rai said that the Environment Department is in the process of preparing a winter action plan to mitigate air pollution this winter. “Different departments and agencies have been tasked with preparing action plans, the first draft of which will be submitted Wednesday,” he had said.
To combat the same, the Delhi Police, Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and Revenue Department will work together to enforce the ban on firecrackers ahead of Diwali which falls in October this year.
In 2020, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had banned firecrackers from November 9 to 30 in the National Capital Region (NCR) and in all places where the average air quality that month had dropped below the ‘poor’ category. A ban on firecrackers was in place in Delhi last year as well.