New Delhi: The Delhi government has banned the manufacture, sale, storage and use of all firecrackers as part of its broader action plan to combat extreme winter pollution.
Ruling Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Environment Minister Gopal Rai said the police had been directed to issue a circular on behalf of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee so that no licence is issued for the sale of crackers.
A similar ban has been in place for the last two years, but was also defied by many residents who burst crackers on Diwali. Last year, Delhi Chief Arvind Kejriwal also warned offenders with a six-month jail term if they burst crackers.
The ban was at the centre of much political rhetoric last year as the BJP targeted the AAP as anti-Hindu, also citing the ban of Chhath celebrations on the banks of the Yamuna.
Rai said Monday that it was important to celebrate a festival, but it was equally important to take care of the environment. “I would request the people of Delhi to celebrate diwali with lamps, not fire crackers,” he added.
An air quality report this March ranked Delhi as the fourth most-polluted city in the world. In 2021, Delhi topped the list of the most polluted capitals, a dubious first position it held for four successive years.
The capital’s air becomes particularly bad in winter — from the middle of December to February — as heavy, cold air traps dust, vehicle emissions and smoke from burning crop stubble in nearby Punjab and Haryana.
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