This allows the manufacture of next-generation joined green crackers that meet noise, emission and safety norms ahead of Diwali. The Bench said it would not permit 24-hour bursting and would consider fixed time windows.
Story so far: On September 30, the Supreme Court ruled out a nationwide firecracker ban and accepted CSIR-NEERI’s recommendation for a “limited and conditional relaxation”.
They are crackers whose chemistry has been reworked to release less particulate matter than conventional ones, without losing brightness, sound or shelf life. NEERI’s (CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute) changes include additives such as zeolite, water-releasing compounds that act as dust suppressants, and metallic composites that improve combustion. Conventional crackers rely on barium nitrate, antimony and other metals linked to respiratory disease.
The label is a misnomer, as there is nothing environmentally friendly about these crackers. However, these are laboratory figures, not verified in real-world conditions. Only manufacturers with a licence from the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO), the central explosives regulator, can register with NEERI. The science is still unfinished. The Court has also given the Central Pollution Control Board and the Centre more time for barium and decibel tests. NEERI began developing the formulations that year. However, the ban hit a largely small-scale informal industry. Green crackers, the Centre has argued in the past, are meant to balance public sentiment during festivals, pollution and livelihoods.
NEERI claims that the earlier generation of ‘green crackers’ saw a 30% cut in particulate matter. Its newer analysis says that the newer variants, called ‘Gen-2’, reduce pollution 45%-60% for PM10 and PM2.5, using formulations with less barium. NEERI is modelling how barium from Gen-2 crackers disperses in Bhopal, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai, with results due by October 15. From 2025: Have ‘green’ crackers brought down pollution? The September 30 order relaxes that framework for a redesigned version of the joined cracker, subject to NEERI’s conditions. In January 2025, the Court extended the firecracker ban to the NCR areas of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
NEERI’s own scientists have called them “reduced emission fireworks”.
The monsoon’s withdrawal is expected to be complete from India by mid-October, which will see the onset of atmospheric conditions such as a cessation of high-altitude winds (that flush pollutants), lower temperatures and an inversion layer that traps pollutants. With Diwali expected in the first week of November, it remains to be seen how all of this will play out with ‘green crackers’ in the mix.
In 2024, IMD warned that firecrackers and stubble fires could push Delhi’s air into the “severe” category when dispersion conditions are unfavourable.
