Amid deteriorating air quality, the Centre said Tuesday the Supreme Court's order on firecrackers will be followed strictly in Delhi and NCR and only the sale of eco-friendly fireworks would be permitted.
However, while launching eco-friendly crackers Monday, Harsh Vardhan, the minister for environment, forest and climate change, had admitted that they would not available this Diwali.
On Tuesday, MoEF Secretary C K Mishra had convened a meeting with the chief secretary Delhi, the special commissioner, the Delhi Police, commissioners of three MCDs, district magistrates of various districts of Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad.
On the issue of firecrackers, it was decided that the directions of the Supreme Court shall be followed "strictly" in Delhi and NCR, a statement said by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change said.
"Only eco-friendly fire crackers would be sold after proper authorisation has been obtained from PESO (Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation).
"Any other kind of firecrackers would not be permitted to be sold in the NCR region as per the order of the Supreme Court," the statement said.
It said the Delhi Police and the district magistrates of Gurugram, Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad were requested to ensure that these measures were strictly implemented in their respective areas.
Last week, the apex court ruled that people can burst firecrackers from 8 pm to 10 pm only on Diwali and other festivals and allowed manufacture and sale of just "green crackers" which have low emission of light, sound and harmful chemicals.
Mishra conveyed "serious concern" over the fact that there was "no significant improvement in the air quality despite the concerted efforts" being made by the ministry and all the stakeholders.
He emphasised on the need for taking action which could lead to local containment of pollution and which was visible to the people.
It was also decided that a Clean Air Week would be organised from November 1 to 5 in collaboration with the Delhi government and the four major NCR cities.
Fifty-two teams were formed comprising the local SDM as a team leader, a senior official from the MoEFCC and representatives from the CPCB, the MCD and the DPCC.
Delhi will have 44 teams and the cities in NCR region namely Gurgaon, Noida, Faridabad and Ghaziabad will have two teams each.
"Field teams will be supported by the local police to ensure compliance and safety. All the DMs and MCD commissioners will be involved in the campaign and ensure that quick action is taken on the cases of violations reported by field teams. In case of repeat violations, criminal proceedings against defaulters will be initiated," the statement said.
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