Delhi cracker ban: Delhi bans storage, sale and bursting of all firecrackers 

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced a complete ban on the storage, sale and bursting of all kinds of firecrackers on September 15, 2021. The Chief Minister tweeted saying that a complete ban on use of all types of crackers is being imposed like last year in view of the dangerous condition of Delhi's pollution during Diwali for the last 3 years.

The Delhi CM appealed to traders to not store any kind of firecracker to prevent losses, as many traders had suffered losses last year as they had stocked up crackers. The complete ban on crackers had been imposed late last year. 

"Just like last year, there will be a complete ban on storage, sale, and bursting of all kinds of firecrackers this year too, in wake of the situation of pollution in Delhi during Diwali in the last three years," tweets Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. pic.twitter.com/5bh87eZbbe

— ANI (@ANI) September 15, 2021

Significance

The decision was announced early this year keeping in mind Delhi traders, as the last minute ban last year had left many sellers in a lurch as they had already bought large stocks of firecrackers and stored them ahead of the festival. 

Delhi Firecracker Ban

The Delhi Government had banned the sale, purchase and bursting of firecrackers just a few days ahead of Diwali from November 7-30, 2020 due to increasing pollution in the capital. The Delhi CM had highlighted then that the capital has been facing the problem of pollution for many years due to stubble burning but no state government could provide any form of an effective solution to this problem.

Background 

The Delhi government was criticized last year for announcing the complete ban on firecrackers including green crackers just a few days before Diwali. The ban had also been imposed in view of the COVID-19 situation in the capital, as Delhi was one of the epicenters of the outbreak.

The air pollution levels in Delhi reach a record high every year around the onset of winter, around Diwali, due to stubble burning in neighbouring states including Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. There have been days when the capital witnesses blanket smog amid hazardous air quality levels.  The bursting of crackers have only added to the problem, leaving the air highly toxic, causing distress to citizens with breathing issues and even small children. 

The Delhi government recently urged the centre to encourage farmers to use a Pusa-made bio-decomposer to resolve the issue of stubble-burning. The Delhi government is also reportedly working on a Winter Action Plan.