Green Crackers Allowed in Delhi-NCR Only on 7 and 8 November, 6–7 AM and 8–10 PM: What the Supreme Court Ordered
The Supreme Court has relaxed the firecracker ban for two days with QR-coded green crackers, 300-metre no-cracker zones and AQI monitoring. The full ban returns on 9 November.
Residents of Delhi and the National Capital Region can burst firecrackers this Diwali, but only certified green crackers, only on 7 and 8 November, and only in two short windows: 6 am to 7 am and 8 pm to 10 pm. The complete ban on firecrackers returns on 9 November.
The directions come from a Supreme Court bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Prasanna B. Varale in the long-running Arjun Gopal v. Union of India case, decided on 29 October.
Why the court relaxed the ban
The bench said religious practice under Article 25 is subject to public health and other fundamental rights, and that the right to life under Article 21 includes a clean environment. But it found that the total ban in force since 2025 had been poorly enforced, had not clearly improved air quality, and had pushed conventional crackers into the market dressed up as green ones. With too little data to prove a blanket ban works best, the court chose tight regulation for a trial period instead.
Key rules
- No-cracker zones: no bursting within 300 metres of hospitals, nursing homes, health centres, old-age homes, educational institutions and silence zones.
- Only certified products: crackers from makers holding CSIR-NEERI and PESO certification, sold in sealed boxes.
- QR codes: every box must carry a product-specific code with the maker’s details, licence, formulation and test certificate.
- Banned items: crackers joined in series (ladis), garlands and anything containing barium.
- Sale points: only at locations fixed by district authorities; online sale is prohibited.
- Enforcement: police patrols at sale points, vehicle checks at NCR entry points, seizures and prosecution of violators, and security deposits from traders that will be forfeited for breaches.
Monitoring and accountability
The Central Pollution Control Board must record air quality before, during and after Diwali, up to 30 November, and states must report how many more patients hospitals saw. All compliance reports are due by 14 December, failing which officials face contempt action. The matter will be heard again on 16 December.
— Legal Desk
Featured image: Fireworks on Diwali night, Bangalore — Subharnab Majumdar, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Sources
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