Irresponsible to burst firecrackers beyond 10 pm: Delhi Minister Sood

New Delhi, Oct 21 (PTI) Delhi Home Minister Ashish Sood on Tuesday said those who burst firecrackers beyond 10 pm on Diwali behaved "irresponsibly." The minister, however, emphasised that bursting firecrackers was not the sole cause behind the spike in pollution in the national capital.

"Delhi people should have completely followed the Supreme Court guideline under which firecrackers were allowed to be burst till 10 pm. It was irresponsible behaviour by those who celebrated the festival by breaking the court's guideline of 10 pm," Sood told PTI The Supreme court recently lifted the ban on sale and use of green firecrackers, approved by National Environmental Engineering and Research Institute (NEERI) in Delhi-NCR.

The court permitted the use of the approved firecrackers from 6 am to 7 am, and 8 pm to 10 pm, on October 19 and October 20.

Sood said the air quality index (AQI) at Anand Vihar in East Delhi was 943 at 5 am and around 390 in Shahdara.

On Tuesday, Delhi residents woke up to a heavy haze and reduced visibility.

The air quality hit the 'red zone' after the Diwali night which witnessed the people bursting firecrackers beyond the two-hour limit.

According to a Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) bulletin, the city's AQI stood at 359, in the 'very poor' category, at 11 am. It was 352 at 8 am, 346 at 5 am, 347 at 6 am and 351 at 7 am.

An AQI between 0 and 50 is 'good', 51 and 100 'satisfactory', 101 and 200 'moderate', 201 and 300 'poor', 301 and 400 'very poor', and 401 and 500 'severe'.

Of the 38 monitoring stations, 35 were in the 'red zone', indicating 'very poor' to 'severe' air quality.

"We appeal to all the citizens to celebrate the festivals following Supreme Court guidelines and support Delhi government in enhancing green cover and cleanliness in the city so that people do not have to face issues like this time," Sood said. PTI VIT VN VN