Delhi, which has gained infamy as one of the world's most polluted cities, has for some years now witnessed a sustained campaign from various quarters seeking a ban on firecrackers. While the Centre launched the newly approved, eco-friendly firecrackers earlier this month as a "safer and cheaper" alternative, the mood in the market is tepid, says Ritwik Sharma.
The death toll in the explosion and subsequent blaze at a firecracker-making unit in Andhra Pradesh's East Godavari district has risen to 17 even as police on Tuesday registered a case of culpable homicide against the factory's owners.
The proposed changes to the child labour law to allow children and adolescents to work for their families would be most retrograde and regressive, say Shinzani Jain and Paranjoy Guha Thakurta.
