This year, the sound of firecrackers can be heard legally on Diwali in Delhi again after many years. The Supreme Court has recently indicated that the ban on the use of “green crackers” i.e. eco-friendly firecrackers in NCR may be temporarily lifted. Chief Justice D.Y. A bench headed by Chandrachud has reserved its order on the matter, but has allowed limited use of green firecrackers for now.
Let us tell you that green crackers are actually such firecrackers which cause less pollution than traditional firecrackers. These were developed by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) – a unit of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). Three major categories were introduced for the first time in the year 2018 SWAS (Safe Water Releaser), STAR (Safe Thermite Cracker) and SAFAL (Safe Minimal Aluminium). Harmful elements like potassium nitrate and sulfur have been removed from these firecrackers, which reduces the emission of smoke and gases by 30 to 40 percent.
According to experts, even though these are “less harmful”, they cannot be called completely ‘clean’. Dipankar Saha, former scientific head of CPCB, says that emissions from any combustion process cannot be completely eliminated, only their quantity can be reduced.
However, there are also several practical challenges with green crackers. It is noteworthy that there is no lab or testing facility available in Delhi to check their authenticity. Only CSIR-NEERI and PESO certified companies have been allowed to manufacture these, but there is a fear of duplicate products in the market. Green logo and QR code have been made mandatory on packets, so that the genuine product can be identified, but many reports suggest that fake QR codes are also spreading in the market.
Environmental activist Bhavreen Kandhari says that even though green crackers reduce pollution by 30%, air quality already reaches dangerous levels during Diwali in a city like Delhi. “When PM2.5 levels exceed the WHO limit by 800 to 1500%, a 30% reduction has no practical impact,” he said. Local Residents Association (RWA) representative Chetan Sharma also said allowing these firecrackers just before winter is a “risky” decision as the impact of pollution is already at its peak during this season.
Overall, as per the information available, the Supreme Court’s stance on green crackers is an attempt to strike a balance between tradition and environment and it is clear that the real test will be this Diwali. It remains to be seen whether the promise of “less pollution” actually brings any relief to Delhi’s air or not.