• Source:JND
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As Delhi's air quality witnessed steep degradation just ahead of Diwali, Aam Aadmi Party Minister Gopal Rai on Monday penned a letter to Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena, asking him to take strict action against violations of the firecracker ban in the national capital.

In his letter, Rai alleged that the firecrackers are being smuggled into Delhi under the nose of police, and being sold openly despite a clear ban on them by the Delhi government. Notably, the law and order of Delhi comes exclusively under the ambit of LG's power.

"It has been brought to my notice that despite the ban, firecrackers are being openly sold in various markets of Delhi. These firecrackers are being brought through various borders connecting Delhi to Haryana and Uttar Pradesh," read the letter of Gopal Rai to LG Saxena.

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Earlier on October 14, the Delhi government promulgated a ban on the production, storage, distribution, and use of firecrackers in the city until January 1.

The AAP minister lambasted Delhi Police, claiming that the law enforcement agency is not taking enough measures to act against the smugglers as well as vendors selling the firecrackers openly.

The letter further read, "It implies that Delhi Police as Law enforcement agencies have not taken the directions to ban firecrackers seriously and vendors are openly flouting the ban imposed."

"Bursting of these firecrackers during Diwali is going to have adverse effects on air pollution and the health of residents of Delhi," the letter added.

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The letter comes in the wake of dwindling air quality in the national capital with the AQI falling to the 'very poor' category in certain areas of Delhi. A thick layer of smog engulfed the city two days before the festival of Diwali.

While the AAP government has announced the enactment of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) framework to tackle air pollution, no significant improvement was witnessed in the air quality.