Why Ban On Firecrackers Is Limited To Delhi-NCR?: Supreme Court Asks; Seeks Pan-India Policy

The Supreme Court has raised questions over the selective imposition of the ban on firecrackers in the Delhi-NCR (National Capital Region).

The Court said that if clean air is a right for 'elite' residents of the national capital, the same must extend to citizens across the country.

The two-Judge Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran was hearing pleas concerning the regulation of firecrackers in the NCR.

“If cities in NCR are entitled for clean air, why not people of other cities?...Whatever policy has to be there, it has to be on a pan-India basis. We cannot have a policy just for Delhi because they are elite citizens of the country", the Bench said.

The CJI observed, “I was in Amritsar last winter and the pollution there was worse than in Delhi. If firecrackers are to be banned, they should be banned throughout the country."

Senior Advocate Aparajita Singh, the Amicus Curiae, said, “The elites take care of themselves. They go out of Delhi when there’s pollution.”

The Apex Court asked the Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Centre, to get a detailed report on the issue from the Commission for Air Quality Management.

The Law Officer said that the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) was examining the feasibility of “green crackers” to reduce pollution. The counsel appearing for firecracker manufacturers suggested NEERI to prescribe permissible chemical compositions, which the industry would then incorporate in the design of crackers.

However, Senior Advocate K. Parameshwar, representing some parties, expressed concern saying alongside the restrictions, authorities were also cancelling their existing licenses.

The Bench remarked that there would be status quo with regard to the cancellation of fire crackers' licences by the authorities. Accordingly, it listed the matter for next hearing on September 22, 2025.

With PTI Inputs