Sep 10, 2024 09:02 PM IST
The argument that the bigger factors behind Delhi’s bad air need to be addressed is a valid one, but it does not change the simple fact that crackers are polluting.
Well ahead of the winter smog and pollution in the national Capital, the Delhi government has announced a ban on firecrackers till January 1, 2025. The ban is an annual affair, though the early announcement this time could help traders avoid losses from unsold stock — a common complaint against last-minute promulgations. But whether a longer lead time will help move the needle on its efficacy remains to be seen. Cracker bans — including the first, Supreme-Court-ordered one in 2017 — have been conspicuous failures, with Delhi’s air quality falling to “severe” during Diwali. Crackers are sold in open defiance of the ban, in grey markets and ferried from across state borders. There is little doubt about the harm that crackers cause, and the breathability crisis they stoke in the NCR, albeit temporarily, pushing air pollution caused by stubble burning into dangerous territory. Both are exacerbated by the fine road/construction dust in the region and the winter inversion phenomenon.
The ban, though brazenly violated, is used to stoke a reactionary, communal narrative of the State singling out a Hindu festival. Hefty fines for both sellers and end-users could have a deterrent effect, but given how deeply unpopular the ban is, its enforcement remains well short of half-hearted. Unless the Centre and the state are convinced they can come together to enforce the ban, there is little meaning in announcing one. The communication has to be consistent: Delhi’s air is not good through the year; winter inversion makes it bad; stubble burning, worse; and, for a few days, crackers push it over the edge, to levels that are positively life threatening for the vulnerable. The argument that the bigger factors behind Delhi’s bad air need to be addressed is a valid one, but it does not change the simple fact that crackers are polluting.
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