Traders in Ghaziabad finally issued licences to sell green crackers

The Ghaziabad District Administration (GDA) finally issued licences to traders for the sale of green crackers in the city late on Tuesday evening. The traders can now sell their products only at four spots designated by the administration.

While 14 traders will sell the green crackers from Kavi Nagar Ramleela ground, 20 will have their stalls on Kotwali Ramleela ground. Vijay Nagar area and Ramleela ground in Indirapuram are earmarked for sale by seven and 12 traders respectively.

The district administration has also cautioned the traders against selling the crackers elsewhere. "Anybody found violating the rule during checking he/she will be booked and action will be taken against the defaulters as per the law," warned Ajay Shankar Pandey, Ghaziabad District Magistrate. 

In 2018, the Supreme Court had banned the sale, use and manufacture of conventional crackers. It allowed only green crackers to be sold and manufactured in the country. 
The court had also fixed a two-hour window for bursting the firecrackers. It was a relaxation of its 2017 order putting a complete ban on use, sale and production of firecrackers. 
The decision to curb the use of firecrackers has been taken in view of the soaring pollution levels.
Unlike conventional crackers, green crackers release lesser carbon emission in the atmosphere. They are designed to have a small shell size and 30% less particulate matter. Also, they create less noise in comparison to traditional crackers.