Ahead of Diwali, the Uttar Pradesh government has issued a notification permitting the bursting of green firecrackers only between 8 pm to 10 pm on the occasion of Diwali.

The government has urged the people to purchase firecrackers only from licensed sellers and not from non-licensed sellers or e-commerce websites.

Authorities have been directed to sensitise the people about the harmful consequences while playing firecrackers, the notification said.

Strict action will be taken against the Station House Officers (SHOs) if the guidelines are not followed by the authorities, it added.

The notification has been released in line with the Supreme Court verdict on October 23, 2018, wherein it had refused to impose a blanket ban on cracker bursting with certain conditions, which included the use of only lesser pollution-causing green crackers.

The court had ruled that people will only be allowed to burst crackers between 8 pm and 10 pm on Diwali.

(Source ANI)