The order states that permission for bursting of firecrackers would strictly be from 8 pm to 10 pm only on November 4.
The District Magistrate of Gurgaon issued an order on Saturday allowing the bursting of green firecrackers for two hours on November 4, the day of Diwali.
The order states that permission for bursting of firecrackers would strictly be from 8 pm to 10 pm only on November 4. The order refers to a Supreme Court order from earlier this year that bans the use and sale of all types of firecrackers during the Covid-19 pandemic in cities and towns where the air quality falls under the ‘poor’ and above category, but restricts the use of firecrackers to green ones in cities where the air quality is ‘moderate’ or below for a duration of not more than two hours.
Deputy Commissioner of Gurgaon Yash Garg said, “Right now, when we track the air quality for the past seven days, it has been in an acceptable category. We are just following the Supreme Court orders.”
The order issued by him mentions that the Haryana State Pollution Control Board reports say that the AQI for Gurugram North and Gurugram South were in the satisfactory and moderate categories between October 16 and 28.
The production and sale of firecrackers other than the green ones remains banned. The ones that can be used are ‘reduced emission’ firecrackers or green crackers that emit low levels of sound and reduced emissions of nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide.
The order states that police are to ensure that there is no sale of banned firecrackers. Regional officers of the Pollution Control Board have also been directed to monitor levels of aluminum, barium, and iron in order to help generate data on pollution caused by bursting of firecrackers.
