With the ban on firecrackers in the national capital ahead of the festival season, traders in Jama Masjid, Paharganj, and Chandani Chowk expressed worry about a considerable loss of business as their employees sulked under a pall of gloom about a likely scuttling of their annual bonuses.
Anticipating high pollution levels during the winter months, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Monday announced a comprehensive ban on the manufacture, storage, sale, and bursting of firecrackers in the capital city. Ram Das, who has owned a cracker shop in the Jama Masjid market for the last four decades, said the restrictions in the last five years have gravely impacted his livelihood.
“Indian government should announce a ban on firecracker production permanently in the country so that we can switch to some other business for our sustenance and save ourselves the yearly wipeout,” Das said.
The Delhi government’s decision to ban firecrackers also includes a prohibition on online sales.
The Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) enforced a full firecracker ban in 2021 and 2022, and the same measure will be in force this year too, Rai had earlier said.
Tarun Sehgal, a vendor in Paharganj, said the ban not only impacts their livelihoods but also dampens the festive mood. “I have six to seven employees who don’t have money to pay their children’s fees. These people wait for the festival season when the business is brisk and they get a chance to fulfil all their families’ needs. Not just livelihoods; the ban affects our celebrations too,” Sehgal said.
The ban comes ahead of the winter season, a period that has been routinely marked by a spike in air pollution over the past several years.
