A court in India’s financial capital, Mumbai, has banned firecrackers on public roads and footpaths.

The judges called it shocking that Mumbai’s pollution is surpassing Delhi’s.

Heads of the city corporation, the police and the pollution board have been summoned.

Firecrackers are banned completely near hospitals and schools.

The next hearing is on October 26.

The Free Press Journal reports that the heads of the BMC, Mumbai Police and the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board were summoned to appear on October 26 to explain their failure to curb pollution and enforce the restrictions.

The judges asked the authorities to show an iota of compliance or else file an affidavit stating that they are helpless, according to Free Press Journal.

The court warned that officials would be held accountable and that contempt proceedings would be started if the lapses continued, according to the same report.

The BMC and the pollution control board were directed to publish notices in newspapers and on social media by October 24 stating that bursting firecrackers on roads, streets, lanes and footpaths is prohibited and highlighting the harmful effects of firecracker smoke and noise.

The court cited its earlier orders of September 22 and October 15 and criticised the BMC and the pollution board for not running public awareness campaigns, according to the reports.

Processions using loudspeakers must prominently display the official police permission, as required by the court’s September 22 directive, according to Outlook India.

The court noted repeated violations, including processions using music systems without prior permission and firecrackers burst on busy streets, according to Outlook India.

The bench said the official machinery is extremely slow to act and asked what is the point in having paper orders, according to Free Press Journal.

The court also questioned the lack of effective action against construction-related pollution and illegal dumping and said rules and procedures appeared to exist only on paper, according to the same report.

Bombay High Court building, Mumbai (file image), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0