BENGALURU : On Saturday, the Delhi Police fired the opening salvo by arresting a man when his neighbours complained that his children were bursting crackers outside of the Supreme Court mandated two-hour window. The judgment, delivered by the apex court recently, had attracted a lot of criticism by those looking to celebrate Deepavali with crackers, and the subsequent action by the Delhi police has thrown a dampener on Bengaluru residents who were hoping that they would not have to toe the line when it came to bursting crackers in the city.
While the Supreme Court gave each state the freedom to fix its own two-hour slot for allowing crackers, Karnataka decided to stay with the 8pm to 10pm slot initially recommended by the SC. However, in the absence of the notification providing any information on penal action, citizens had their hopes up about being able to burst crackers well beyond the deadline. After the Delhi case, however, they are not sure anymore.
"It is unheard of to arrest someone and book a case for bursting crackers. It is unfortunate that the court had to intervene in such a matter. There are lots of causes of air pollution that our government is least bothered about tackling.
They just want to pick on the easiest one to regulate, the citizens," said an irate resident of Domlur, who did not want to be identified. When asked if he or his family members would adhere to the time slot, he said, "We will just have to be on the lookout for trouble. It is not our intention to spoil people's sleep, but Deepavali comes once a year."
Across town, in Jayanagar on RV Road, residents are worried, but say they will burst crackers. "Two hours is a decent time slot in my opinion. But I don't agree with the judgment as regulations must also include more long-term polluters like factories, vehicles and even our local BMTC buses that belch black smoke every day. Hopefully, our neighbours won't call the police if we end up bursting crackers beyond the deadline," said Ashish M, a resident.
This year, due to the several campaigns against crackers and the judgment by the Supreme Court, cracker sales have dropped significantly. "Most of our sales are for crackers that do not burst or create much noise. A lot of people are saying no to bombs this year," said Mahesh, who owns a cracker shop on Avenue Road. Interestingly, while the Delhi Police has put in force a plan of action, there is no such announcement made by the State Government, which has been mum on the action that will be taken against those who break the deadline.
Police to check for violators
In a circular dated November 2, the state government also banned the manufacture and sale of ladis. “Owing to noise pollution, air pollution and the pollution caused by the remains of the crackers after they have exploded, the state government is prohibiting the manufacture and sale of series crackers or ladis,” the circular said. District administration officials have been asked to carry out awareness programmes about the ill-effects of firecrackers in schools and colleges.
“The KSPCB will inquire about anyone bursting crackers 7 days before and after Deepavali,” the circular said, adding that officials have been directed to keep watch for those who do not follow SC orders. “All municipal corporations, district administrations, Zilla panchayats and gram panchayats will keep an eye on people who burst crackers as part of a community-organised event. Police personnel must ensure that the court order is followed and must take action against violators. Police should ensure banned firecrackers are not sold,” it said.