The Centre on Friday urged the Supreme Court to ease the ban on the bursting of firecrackers in the Delhi-NCR region ahead of Diwali.

The court said a complete ban on bursting of firecrackers in Delhi-NCR was “neither practical nor ideal” as such restrictions were often violated and balancing of equities was needed.

Solicitor-general Tushar Mehta placed the request before a bench of Chief Justice B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandra, which reserved its verdict after briefly hearing the Centre, firecracker manufacturers and environmentalists.

The Centre and firecracker manufacturers argued that the bursting of firecrackers had been an annual feature for decades and there was no noticeable improvement in the air quality index to suggest that the ban had proved beneficial.

The Centre pleaded that firecrackers be allowed to be used between 8am and 8pm for Diwali, Christmas and New Year and between 11.45pm and 12.30am for Gurpurab.

“Let our children celebrate Diwali and the other festivals with fervour,” Mehta urged the court.