News Brief
Supreme Court Relaxes NCR Firecracker Ban For Diwali; Green Crackers Allowed With Strict Curbs
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The Supreme Court of India. (File Photo)
The Supreme Court on Wednesay (15 October) eased the blanket firecracker ban in the Delhi-NCR, permitting NEERI-approved green crackers for Diwali under certain conditions, Livelaw reported.
As an interim step, the Court said it was proposing to adopt the approach taken by the Supreme Court in 2018 in the Arjun Gopal Case.
A bench of Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran issued the order in the long-running M C Mehta case concerning air quality in the NCR.
The Court issued the following directions:
The sale and bursting of green crackers, as approved in the website of NEERI, shall be permitted from 18 to 21 October 2025.
Sales are limited to designated outlets publicised across NCR, to be identified by District Collectors/Commissioners in consultation with police.
Police, with district officials, must deploy patrol teams to monitor approved sale points.
Patrol teams must be trained to identify compliant green cracker products.
Regular checks must verify that only QR-coded, permitted crackers are sold.
They should also take random samples for the purpose of analysis.
Violations will invite action, including license cancellation, and e-commerce sales of firecrackers remain prohibited.
Crackers from unregistered or unlicensed makers must be seized at once.
Importing firecrackers into NCR from outside the region is not allowed.
The use of firecrackers not approved by NEERI as approved green crackers shall not be permitted.
Buying or selling firecrackers on e-commerce platforms is completely banned.
CPCB, with State PCBs, must track AQI from 14-21 October, submit a report to the Court, and may collect sand and water samples.
On 3 April, a two-judge Bench had ordered a year-long total ban on all firecrackers, including green ones, in NCR.
Multiple recall pleas were later filed challenging that blanket prohibition.
While reserving orders on 10 October, the CJI had indicated the ban might be eased only for the Diwali window.
