As Diwali is round the corner, The Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed the sale of green crackers approved by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) in Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR) in Delhi-NCR, from October 18 to October 20, following the time range condition of 6 am to 7 am and 8 pm to 10 pm. Diwali will be celebrated on October 20 this year. The crackers being sold should have QR codes, and this relaxation is being allowed on a trial basis only.
“The sales shall only be through licensed traders and products that are green crackers manufactured by those who are registered with the NEERI… Any fire crackers seized which are not manufactured by the registered licensed manufacturers shall be immediately confiscated,” the bench said.
The licences of the traders that expired or were cancelled after the ban on firecrackers, will be renewed for the time period stipulated by the statutory authorities.
“There shall be no firecrackers allowed in the NCR region from outside the said region… The use of firecrackers with barium and those not approved by NEERI as green crackers shall not be permitted, and if found for sale or in possession of the individual trader, the same shall be confiscated immediately,” the Court said.
“The sale of these products shall be permitted only from the designated location in the entire National Capital Region, which shall be identified by the district collector…in consultation with the district superintendent of police and given wide publicity,” the Court added.
The bench directed that manufacturers and sellers of banned products be served notices, warning that they could face penalties and cancellation of licenses or registrations with PESO or NEERI.
