New Delhi, October 23: The Supreme Court gave its verdict on a plea seeking a ban on the manufacture and sale of firecrackers across India to curb the menace of air pollution today. The bench comprising of Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan pronounced the judgement and said there will be no complete ban in firecrackers. The Apex Court has allowed the sale of green (eco-friendly) crackers in the market. The burning of firecrackers during Diwali will be allowed from 8 PM to 10 PM. For Christmas and New Year, the timings will be from 11:45 PM to 12:45 AM. Green Firecrackers This Diwali, Says Supreme Court; Twitterati is Confused About the Term, Check Funny Tweets and Jokes.

Watch the highlights of the Supreme Court Verdict on Ban of Firecrackers

In addition to this, the bench further added saying that there will be no online sale of crackers and the sale will only be allowed for sellers with an authorised license. The court has directed all states to explore the feasibility of community cracker bursting during festivals. The Apex Court has allowed only "low polluting" green crackers which are within permitted decibel limits and emission norms will be allowed. Sale of Safe and Green Firecrackers Allowed, No Complete Ban Across India, Rules Supreme Court Ahead of Diwali 2018.

The SC in August said that it needs to take into account all aspects, including the fundamental right of livelihood of manufacturers and the right to health of over 1.3 billion people in the country, while considering a plea for a ban on firecrackers.

On October 9 last year, Supreme Court temporarily banned the sale of firecrackers ahead of Diwali. The court said it was an experiment to examine its effect on the pollution levels.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 23, 2018 10:59 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).