Supreme Court’s firecracker ban may be well-intentioned but smacks of Lutyens’ Delhi exceptionalism and is unimplementable
While the Central Pollution Control Board in their obturate madness had demanded a blanket ban on firecrackers on Diwali, the Supreme Court seemed to have a little bit of sense and restricted the burning of firecrackers between 8 and 10 at night of November 7, Diwali. Now let us clear the air on some things. Delhi suffers from an air quality problem, of that there is no doubt. Poorly made firecrackers in India, often with banned chemicals, will burn and load the air with noxious nitrogen oxides and sulphurous gases. Given that the weather is changing in Delhi and temperatures are getting lower, thermal inversion will occur and the dirty, polluted air will not leave the Capital for days and find its way into the lungs of every man, woman and child. But banning firecrackers or even restricting their use will make little or no difference to those wanting to celebrate. One thing that this newspaper can say with a degree of confidence is that there will be mass contempt of the Supreme Court’s orders on Diwali, particularly with a police force that will be extremely reluctant to implement this order. And given the overworked police, can you really blame them? The fact is: Diwali is a celebration, it is important for many people and not just Hindus. People have always enjoyed atishbaazi on Diwali. A Supreme Court order or a plea by a Government law officer seemingly against his own Government will not change that. This order is at face value even more ridiculous than the unimplementable Sabarimala order.
But excessive bursting of firecrackers is a problem, so how do you deal with it? Well, first make the manufacture of firecrackers a far more organised industry that follows international standards in the processes used, handmade firecrackers might be traditional but they need to go. Second, like cigarettes, once the firecracker industry is formalised, tax the hell out of firecrackers, and while this might make inaccessible to the public at large, the money raised from these taxes can be spent on cleaning up the air. And third, like cities the world over, large cities in India can have communal fireworks displays, in Delhi this can be at several places. Professional pyrotechnics teams can set up incredible and mesmerising displays instead of the haphazard, chaotic display in our skies. Of course, all these suggestions need political will and spine, but there is none on display.