Punjab CM allows green firecrackers in state for 2 hours on Diwali
Punjab crackers ban: Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Tuesday announced a 2-hour relaxation for the use of green firecrackers on Diwali and Gurpurab, with a curb for Christmas too across the state. Apart from other districts in Punjab, a complete ban on crackers has been imposed in Mandi Gobindgarh from the midnight of November 9-10 till November 20-December 1 midnight on account of its poor AQI levels. Also Read | Haryana government takes U-turn, allows sale and use of crackers on festivals Meanwhile, only green crackers will be allowed in Punjab as per these orders, which are in compliance with the directives of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), as well as various judicial orders passed amid reports of firecrackers likely to aggravate the Covid-19 problem. Also Read | Diwali 2020: From Rajasthan to Delhi, states/UTs which have announced cracker ban While on Diwali day (November 14), green firecrackers can be burst in Punjab from 8 pm to 10 pm, on Gurpurab (November 30) they will be allowed from 4 am to 5 am and from 9 pm to 10 pm. On Christmas Eve, people can burst these crackers from 11.55 pm till 12.30 am. While chairing a virtual Covid review meeting, the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh directed the Department of Science, Technology and Environment to issue the necessary notification in this regard. Likewise, he warned against any violation of these curbs. He asked DGP Dinkar Gupta to crack down heavily to ensure penal action as per the law. -PTC News