The Supreme court order came on a plea seeking a ban on manufacture and sale of firecrackers across India to curb pollution.
The Supreme Court Tuesday permitted the sale and manufacture of low emission “green” firecrackers countrywide and fixed a two-hour time period from 8 pm to 10 pm for bursting them on Diwali and other festivals.
A bench comprising Justices A.K. Sikri and Ashok Bhushan also restrained e-commerce websites like Flipkart and Amazon from selling firecrackers which were beyond the permissible limit.
The apex court’s order came on a plea seeking a ban on manufacture and sale of firecrackers across the country to curb air pollution.
The bench also said that e-commerce websites will be hauled up for contempt of court if they don’t adhere to the court’s direction.
“Firecrackers with permissible decibel sound limits will only be allowed to be sold in the market,” the bench said.
It also asked the Centre to encourage community cracker bursting during Diwali and other festivals in Delhi-NCR and directed all states to explore feasibility of community cracker bursting during festivals.
It also said that Station House Officers of police stations concerned will be held liable if banned firecrackers are sold in their area.
The top court had earlier said there is a need to take into account all aspects, including the fundamental right of livelihood of firecracker manufacturers and the right to health of over 1.3 billion people in the country, while considering a plea for the ban.
The apex court had said the Article 21 (right to life) of Constitution applies to both segments of people and it needs to maintain a balance while considering a countrywide ban on firecrackers.
It had asked the Centre to suggest measures for curbing pollution and the effect of firecrackers on the public at large.
Firecracker manufacturers earlier told the court that use of crackers should not be completely banned and it should instead be strictly regulated.
They had contended that crackers are not the reason for increase in air pollution and there are other factors, like wind and temperature, which contribute to it.
They had said firecracker manufacturers can be deprived of their right to do business based on statements which were not supported by facts.
On 9 October last year, the top court temporarily banned the sale of firecrackers ahead of Diwali.
Later, the court refused to relax its order while dismissing a plea by traders who had sought permission to sell crackers for at least a day or two before Diwali on October 19, 2017.
The apex court said its ban order during Diwali that year was an experiment to examine its effect on pollution levels in the region. – PTI
Yes It is a good well balanced decision respecting the tradition and minimizing the pollution level of the environment by Regulating the use of Green Crackers & timings. Kudos to SC. Tx.
I am a great fan of the apex court. In the present decision, it has sought to strike a fair balance between the right of children to have fun on Diwali – which provides work to other children in Sivakasi – and the need to keep the air of NCR and other urban centres barely breathable. However, the question arises why democratically elected governments are unwilling to take such decisions in the public interest, why they are so diffident, wanting to be all things to all men, not risk the faintest opprobrium. Too much authority is being ceded by the executive to the judiciary. Fortunately, the latter tends to get it right most of the time. However, at some stage, the imbalance will need to be redressed.