 "Supreme Court says no to barium-made firecrackers, upholds Delhi govt's ban")
Ahead of the upcoming festive season, the Supreme Court on Friday rejected a plea seeking the manufacture and use of firecrackers made using barium. The apex court said it would not interfere with the Delhi government's ban on the use of firecrackers.
On September 14, the top court reserved its verdict on a plea seeking a ban on firecrackers to curb pollution levels, including in the Delhi-NCR region. The top court had then asked Delhi police not to issue temporary licences to sell firecrackers in the capital city.
A bench of Justices AS Bopanna and MM Sundresh earlier this month said, "We have to see what level of work has been done over the years and whether any additional directions are required to be issued. We see that most of the aspects have been taken care of by various orders passed by this court from time to time."
"When there is a ban imposed by the government it means complete ban. Just ensure that no temporary licences are given by the Delhi police. Giving licenses of any kind will be in violation of our orders," the bench told Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for Centre.
She said since the 2018 order of the apex court when conventional firecrackers were banned in the Delhi-NCR region, a lot of work has been done, and only green firecrackers are allowed.
Bhati said no permanent licences for the sale of firecrackers had been issued since 2016, and temporary licences issued were for green crackers. "These licences also get suspended when the government imposes a complete ban," she said.
Before that, on September 13, the court refused to interfere with the Delhi government's order putting a comprehensive ban on the manufacturing, storage, sale and bursting of firecrackers in the city, saying people's health is important.
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"No, we are not going to interfere. Where the government has banned firecrackers, it means complete ban. People's health is important. If you want to burst firecrackers, go to states where there is no ban," the bench told advocate Shashank Shekhar Jha, appearing for BJP Lok Sabha member Manoj Tiwari.
(With agency inputs)