Greater Noida: Two people have been arrested from the Knowledge Park area for allegedly illegally selling firecrackers without a licence. Firecrackers worth around Rs 3 lakh have been seized from them. The arrests have been made as part of a police campaign ahead of the festival season. Both Vicky Chauhan and Sameer Chauhan are residents of Tugalpur village. They were nabbed from a slum area near Gurjar market. Police recovered seven sacks of firecrackers, including twine bombs and sky shots, among others. "The men bought these firecrackers from Hapur to sell in Greater Noida ahead of Diwali which falls on November 12 this year. They have been booked under sections of the Explosives Act, 1884, said ACP Arvind Kumar. Earlier this month, the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) directed the Noida Authority and district administration to implement the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), according to the revised guidelines of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), from October 1. Some of the new CAQM guidelines in the citizen charter urge people to avoid firecrackers during festivals as well as end-of-life vehicles i.e., older than 15 and 10 years petrol and diesel vehicles, respectively, during GRAP stage 1, i.e., when the AQI is in the 201-300 range (poor). We also published the following articles recentlyCAQM proposes to exempt DG sets from GRAP ban till December 31The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has proposed to exempt diesel gensets that have not converted to clean fuel from the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in order to operate emergency services. The proposal comes after strong opposition from residential societies and establishments that have not upgraded to gas-based gensets. The exemption would be a one-time exception until December 31, 2023. The CAQM has received feedback on the total ban on diesel gensets, citing issues such as cost implications and delays in gas supply. The exemption would apply to essential services such as hospitals, railways, and airports.Haveris firecracker biz takes a big hit after recent tragedyA massive fire at a firecracker storage unit in Haveri, India has severely affected the firecracker industry in the district, with over 95% of businesses impacted. Only a few vendors have opened shops for the Gowri-Ganesha festival, resulting in significantly reduced sales. The district administration has temporarily shut down the remaining five storage units and vendors are hesitant to maintain stock due to safety concerns. The district, which used to generate business worth at least Rs 5 to 6 crore during the festival, has seen sales of only Rs 30 lakhs this year.4 days ahead of GRAP, first hint of poor airGurgaons air quality deteriorated to "poor" with an AQI of 221, attributed to low wind speed. The AQI is expected to remain poor for the next three days due to the wind speed forecast. PM2.5 levels exceeded the permissible limit at three monitoring stations. Dust and vehicular emissions are the primary causes of air pollution, according to HSPCB officials. Air pollution has become a year-round problem in Delhi-NCR and neighboring areas. The GRAP has four stages of adverse air quality, with corresponding actions to be taken based on projected levels.

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