Delhi HC junks plea challenging blanket ban on firecrackers
Darpan News Desk IANS, 20 Oct, 2022 11:30 AM
New Delhi, Oct 20 (IANS) The Delhi High Court on Thursday refused to entertain a petition challenging the Arvind Kejriwal-led government's blanket ban on firecrackers in the national capital.
Justice Yashwant Varma said the issue is already pending before the Supreme Court and observed that it is not appropriate for the High Court to take the matter.
Two petitioners, engaged in storing and selling of green crackers, approached the High Court challenging the Delhi Pollution Control Committee's (DPCC) order to completely ban the manufacture, storage, sale, and bursting of all kinds of firecrackers till next year in the capital city.
The plea stated that the air quality in New Delhi has been moderate or better at least since August 15 this year.
"In this view, there is no occasion to impose a ban on the use of even green crackers. Almost all Covid-19 related restrictions that were in force in December 2020 have now been relaxed. There is thus no reason that a restriction on the sale and use of firecrackers remain, especially at a time when the AQI levels in Delhi are at moderate or better levels," it said.
The petitioners also argued that the ban is against the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and Supreme Court orders.
"It is clear from the order of the learned NGT dated December 1, 2020, and that of the Supreme Court dated July 23, 2021, that a complete ban on the use of crackers is impermissible. Restrictions can be made only in cases where the air quality is poor. The same is not the case in Delhi," the plea contended.
For a political party that was taking a serious shot at coming to power in Punjab less than two years ago, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) appears to have gone wayward.
Students from India and three other countries will get faster visas to study in Canada as it has introduced major changes in visa procedures to reduce the processing time, according to Canadian immigration authority.
Gurbinder Singh, who hails from Punjab and worked as a crane operator for a private company in Abu Dhabi, had injured his knee and was diagnosed with serious medical condition resulting in amputation of both his hands and legs.
The summer heat took its toll on an IAF personnel who collapsed during the guard of honour ceremony organised at the Rashtrapati Bhavan for visiting Seychelles President Danny Faure.
In a life upended by allegations of terror and prolonged imprisonment before acquittal, it's his love story that helped him cut through layers of pain, says Mohammed Aamir Khan.
