Firecrackers

Says SC had only come down on conventional fireworks, but had allowed green crackers that release fewer emissions

As many as 85 fire incidents were reported in Mumbai during the first three days of Diwali celebrations, of which 37, or nearly 44 per cent, were caused by crackers, said the Fire Brigade on Tuesday. However, no casualties were reported in these incidents. According to the Fire Brigade, as many as 37 blazes were triggered due to bursting of firecrackers among the 85 such incidents reported in the city between October 22 and October 24. A top Fire Brigade official told PTI that of the 85 fire calls received in the last three days, the maximum 41 were on October 24 (the main day of Diwali festival), followed by 27 on October 23 and 17 on October 22. Elaborating further, he said crackers were responsible for 28 incidents of fire on October 24, followed by seven on October 23 and two on October 22. Before the start of Diwali, the Mumbai civic body had appealed to citizens to take precautions while celebrating the festival and contact the Fire Brigade's control room on 101 and its .

The 6000 crore fireworks industry of Sivakasi, which has turned mainly into green crackers, is now planning to tap the international firecracker industry hitherto dominated by Chinese players

West Bengal Environment Minister Manas Bhuniya Monday said the new central control room at Paribesh Bhavan here is monitoring sound and air pollution in real time on Diwali and Kali Puja. Bhuniya, who inspected the control room at the West Bengal Pollution Control Board headquarters, told reporters that experts from IIT-Delhi are examining the data at regular intervals, particularly during evening, and passing on the information to departments concerned. "If there is any data about violation of sound limits prescribed by the WBPCB, we will mark the hotspots and officers of the respective police stations will be alerted, and the offenders will be tracked," he said. Over 100 mini control rooms at the district level across North and South Bengal are functioning since the evening and feeding data to the central control room every minute, an Environment Department official said. WBPCB chairman Kalyan Rudra said so far, the situation has not turned alarming, which can be attributed to th

Ban, strict fines fail to deter buyers, Air Quality Index at 247, hits 'poor' category on Sunday, a day ahead of Diwali

Two persons were charred to death in a fire that broke out in a cluster of firecracker shops in Vijayawada in the early hours of Sunday, police said. Workers were apparently sleeping in one of the three shops that got gutted in the fire, police said. Three firecracker shops were burnt down fully but quick response by the Fire Services personnel prevented the accident from destroying other shops. People residing in houses in the vicinity were jolted out of their sleep following the explosive sound caused by the fire. There is a fuel station exactly opposite the ground where the firecracker shops were set up for Deepavali festival but luckily the blaze did not spread, as at least four fire tenders rushed to the spot to douse the flames. Police and Fire Services personnel were yet to determine the cause of the blaze. Local MLA Malladi Vishnu and city Police Commissioner K R Tata visited the scene to take stock of the situation. Local residents raised a protest over permitting the .

The percentage of households bursting firecrackers in Delhi-NCR on Diwali could be the highest in five years as two out of every five families are likely to indulge in the activity, according to a survey. Ten per cent of the respondents said they have already bought firecrackers from shops in Delhi, while 20 per cent said they have purchased firecrackers from other cities in the National Capital Region (NCR), indicating that the ban on the sale of such items is not as effective as it needs to be, according to the survey conducted by LocalCircles. The survey received more than 10,000 responses from the residents of all the districts in Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Gurugram and Faridabad. Sixty-nine per cent of the respondents were men, while 31 per cent were women. "Sixty-one per cent respondents said they will not be burning any crackers either because they are convinced that they cause pollution or because they are abiding by the ban. The survey results, when compared over time, indica

Three more people, who were hospitalised with severe burns in a firecrackers explosion at a home in Gurugram last week, have died, pushing the toll to six in the incident, police said on Friday. Five days ago, three people had succumbed to injuries in the explosion in the house in Nakhrola village. With this, all six injured in the October 12 explosion have died, police said. According to the police, Tanuj (14) and Vishnu Kant (40) succumbed on Friday morning at a hospital in Delhi while Satish (40) died on Wednesday night. Earlier, the house owner, Bhagwan Das alias Kala (40), his son Manish (20) and daughter Chhavi (10) died on October 16. Satish was a relative of Kala while Tanuj was his son. Vishnu Kant was the driver with Satish, said police. Six people, including four members of a family and their one relative and his driver, were seriously injured after a huge explosion at the house on October 12 afternoon. An FIR was registered against house owner Das at Kherki Daula polic

The Supreme Court on Thursday turned down a plea by BJP leader Manoj Tiwari seeking an urgent hearing on a petition challenging the blanket ban on firecrackers in Delhi

The Delhi Government has extended the ban on manufacturing, storing, selling and bursting of firecrackers in continuation of last year's directive

Key items not being produced is likely to further bring it down, say local industry sources

The High Court of Karnataka has upheld the police department's decision to withdraw the no-objection certificate issued for sale of firecrackers within Bengaluru city limits

Fourteen people were killed and another 10 seriously injured in a major blast that rocked a crowded locality in Bihar's Bhagalpur district, pulling down a number of structures

Six migrant workers were killed and 14 others sustained burn injuries in an explosion at an illegal firecracker factory in Himachal Pradesh's Una district on Tuesday, officials said.

Three people died and four others were grievously injured in an explosion at a firecracker unit in Sattupeti village of Tamil Nadu's Virudhunagar district on Wednesday morning.

Fireworks led to major changes in PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations in Delhi, DPCC said

Firecrackers - a Diwali staple - are not a common sight this time round

The court asked the West Bengal government to explore the possibility to ensure that banned firecrackers and related items are not imported in the state at the entry point itself

Despite the ban on use of Barium Salts in the firecrackers, prohibited crackers are being manufactured, transported, sold and used, it said

"The decision to ban all forms of firecrackers prior to about 1.5 months of Diwali is arbitrary and unreasonable," the petition contended