Bengaluru, 30 October

The State government will enforce the Supreme Court’s guidelines and limit the bursting of firecrackers this Deepavali to between 8pm and 10pm only, Forest and Environment Minister Ramalinga Reddy said on Friday.

“When we were children, very few crackers were burst. Times have changed now,” Reddy said after chairing a meeting with officials of the Environment and Biology Department and the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB). “Now people are spending lots of money to burst crackers, causing pollution to increase.”

Hence, he said that the firecrackers could only be burst between 8pm and 10pm, as per the Supreme Court’s guidelines. Reddy said that he had spoken to police officials as well.

“People are welcome to celebrate and burst crackers, but it must be done strictly within the established rules and regulations,"  he added. 

He also urged the public and youngsters particularly to burst green crackers, amid concerns about the deteriorating air quality. 

Reddy said that the packaging on green crackers must have the mandatory Green Cracker Mark and a 'QR Code'. District officials have been directed to check this, and crackers found without this certification will not be considered green crackers and seized. 

Deepavali will take place between 8 November and 10 November. 

Reddy added that for New Year’s Day, firecrackers can only be burst until 12.30pm. 

The Supreme Court recently decided against imposing a blanket ban on firecrackers, but said that it cannot allow the practice to go unregulated.