The Supreme Court on Monday reinstated a ban on the sale of firecrackers during Diwali celebrations in Delhi and the National Capital Region until November 1, PTI reported. The court said it wants to assess the difference in air quality in the highly polluted region.

The order follows the Supreme Court’s temporary relaxation of the 2016 ban in September, when the bench had said that a complete ban would be “extreme” and stressed the need for a phased reduction in the use of fire crackers

A petition, filed in the name of three children, had requested the court to reimpose the ban citing high pollution levels during the festival, where revellers use huge amounts of firecrackers as part of the festivities. The Central Pollution Control Board had supported the plea against the ban.

Smog in the NCR last Diwali

Air quality in Delhi and the NCR saw an alarming drop after Diwali celebrations on October 30, 2016. As a result of the smog, schools remained closed for three days from November 7. The National Green Tribunal had also declared an environmental emergency in Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.