West Bengal govt allows only 'green' firecrackers to be sold for Diwali; restricts timings

The West Bengal government has allowed the sale of green crackers in the state. However, the state government has also fixed a time slot for the bursting of crackers on the day of Diwali, which is set at 8 pm to 10 pm. On the occasion of Chhath puja, green crackers can be used for celebrating the festival from 6 am till 8 am. For the festivities surrounding Christmas and New Year celebrations, the timing has been fixed from 11:55 pm to 12:30 am.

The West Bengal Pollution Control Board said, “There shall be a complete ban on the sale and bursting of all kinds of firecrackers, except green crackers in the state of West Bengal till further orders in this regard.” The order also stated that other than the above-specified festivals and occasions, people must seek prior permission of the District Magistrate/Commissioners of Police/Superintendents of Police to be able to burst green crackers for a limited period in the state of West Bengal. Permission for more than two hours will not be granted to anyone in the state.

Rajasthan allows green crackers while Delhi puts complete ban 

The Rajasthan Government had reversed its decision to ban the sale and use of crackers in the state as the state government issued a revised advisory last week announcing that only "green" crackers would be allowed for sale. The Rajasthan Government also issued strict timings for the bursting of green crackers for the festive season. The state government had banned the sale and the use of the crackers on September 30 from October 1, 2021, to January 31, 2022. Delhi has completely banned the sale and the use of any sort of crackers until January 1, citing the extremely poor air quality index (AQI) during the months of November and December. CM Arvind Kejriwal has also announced several steps to reduce air pollution.

With ANI inputs