HC orders survey of illegal sale of firecrackers

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Monday directed the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) to survey stalls that sell firecrackers in Kopri Colony area and initiate action against those that are storing more than the licensed quantity of crackers or are selling crackers without a license.

A bench comprising chief justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and justice Amit Borkar issued the directions on a public interest litigation filed by Kopri Bachav Samiti.

The plea stated that in 2009, the assistant municipal commissioner of Thane had granted temporary permission to some stalls for storing and selling firecrackers in an open ground. It was also decided that existing shops which had obtained licenses to sale firecrackers could store a specified quantity and carry on sale after obtaining permission from the chief fire officer.

The Samiti approached the high court through advocate Vaibhav Gaikwad, claiming that temporary and permanent license holders were setting up shops selling firecrackers in residential areas causing apprehension of a fire incident amongst the residents. The plea claims that no rules or regulations prescribed under the Explosives Act were being followed by the stalls.

The Samiti claimed that even after approaching the Thane Municipal Corporation and the chief control officer (explosives), chief fire officer, assistant police commissioner, and senior police inspector, Kopri, no action was taken against the defaulting stalls holders.

“We had approached the Bombay high court earlier in 2009 when certain shopkeepers with temporary permission to sell firecrackers had set up shops in residential areas of Kopri. The shopkeepers were asked to shift their shops to Sant Tukaram Garden, an open area, by the Thane Municipal Corporation,” said Haresh Sarwan, chairman of Kopri Bachav Samiti.

Shopkeepers with permanent licenses are usually given a quota of stocking 550 kg to 1,100 kg of firecrackers and gunpowder under the Explosives Act. “However, the shopkeepers stock more than the permitted amount. Hence, there is apprehension amongst the citizens,” Sarwan said.