SC order on crackers

By Our Legal Correspondent

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 27. Describing `right to peaceful sleep' as a fundamental right, the Supreme Court today asked all the District Collectors in the country to ensure that firecrackers were burst only between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. during Dasara, Diwali and other festivals.

To protect people from the ill-effects of air and noise pollution, a three-Judge Bench, comprising the Chief Justice Dr. A.S. Anand, Mr. Justice R.C. Lahoti and Mr. Justice Ashok Bhan, also directed the Centre, States and Union Territories (UTs) to strictly enforce Rule 89 of the Environment Protection (EP) Rules, 1986 issued under the EP Act.

(This Rule prohibits manufacture, sale or use of fire crackers generating a noise level exceeding 125 decibels at four metres distance from the point of bursting.)

It directed the authorities to ensure that fireworks were not used at any time in silence zones (within 100 metres area) around public or private hospitals, nursing homes or other institutions for the reception and treatment of the sick/wounded, educational institutions, religious places, courts and other places designated as silence zones.

The Bench, which had taken suo motu cognisance of the issue on a reference made by two advocates, gave these directions during the resumed hearing of the case. Senior advocate, Mr. Jitender Sharma, appeared as amicus curiae.

It directed the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Information Departments of all States and UTs to give widest possible publicity to these directions both on radio, television and the print media.

The Bench asked the State Education Research Centres and managements/principals of all schools to take steps to inform students about the ill-effects of firecrackers on health and otherwise and also inform them about the court's directions.

The Bench asked all the heads of Ministries/Departments of Industries/Explosives, Environment, Information and Broadcasting, Education, Public Health and Police to file compliance reports to the court within a week after the festivals explaining how precisely the directions were carried out and posted the matter for further hearing for the second week of November.

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