‘Had decision come before Dussehra… Now it’s too late’: SC allows green crackers but Delhi traders say no licences, limited stock

He added that the stock would have to be removed from the shop once the three-day sale window — from Dhanteras to Diwali — closes.

According to Jain, there are around 140 permanent trading licence holders in Delhi, who can sell green crackers at their shop this Diwali.

Temporary licences to sell firecrackers, typically granted for 20 days, take around three to five working days to process. Permanent licences, valid for two years under the Explosives Rules, 2008, are issued by PESO and take up to two months to process in case of new applications and two weeks in case of renewals. “Diwali is next week, most will not even have the time to complete the paperwork,” said Jain.

With Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa directing that QR codes be displayed for customers buying green crackers, traders fear the limited window will encourage black market sales. “Traders will only have the option to sell limited stock amid high competition. If the stock gets over, people may turn to illegal means to buy crackers,” Jain said.

For wholesalers like Umesh Kumar Mathuria from Jama Masjid, the SC order reflects a lack of understanding of how the industry operates. “How can manufacturers not be from outside NCR? These are not items that are sold regularly… We make advance bookings at least four months ahead with dealers.”

Mathuria maintained that he will not sell crackers this year. “Had the decision come before Dusshera, we could have tried. Now it’s too late,” he said, adding that limiting sales to NCR-made crackers makes the situation worse. “When 99% of the country depends on Sivakasi (in Tamil Nadu) for fireworks, how will our stock be sufficient?”

Mathuria maintained that small-scale manufacturers have been the worst hit. “We have waited for the court relief for nine years (The SC first imposed a ban on firecrackers in Delhi-NCR in 2014-15). Only two-three big players remain in Delhi-NCR and they sell crackers throughout the year. The small-scale manufacturers and traders suffer.”

Pointing to inconsistencies in enforcement, he said, “Digital trade goes unchecked, and power has unevenly shifted to the big players…”

“Among the 200-odd permanent firecracker trading licence holders in Delhi-NCR, while many have surrendered their permits, many automatically got suspended because they didn’t renew their permit,” he added.

For Sushi Tyagi, a former permanent licence holder for firecracker manufacturing and trading in Ghaziabad, “one year’s work cannot be completed in three days”. He claimed that nobody in Ghaziabad has the capacity to manufacture firecrackers anymore. “We had stock because we couldn’t dispose of it.”

Tyagi’s company, Arya Enterprises, had a valid licence from the district administration to manufacture green crackers, between 2022 and 2024. “Until 2024, all the registered manufacturers in Ghaziabad got approvals from the district administration and not the Centre. Now their licences are yet to be renewed,” he said.

Harjeet Singh Chhabra, president of Sadar Bazar Traders Association, meanwhile, welcomed the SC decision. “I welcome the Supreme Court’s nod to green crackers, people of Delhi haven’t celebrated Diwali since the last nine years.”

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