'Curbing illegal firecracker import did not boost sales'

Effort to clamp down illegal cracker manufacturing and a ban on Chinese crackers seemed not adequate to spur the domestic industry which is facing a lull, a survey by ASSOCHAM has revealed.

A survey of fireworks manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers by the industry body has revealed huge stocks of Chinese firecrackers are lying with the wholesalers and retailers who are selling it in places like Ahmedabad, Delhi/NCR, Jaipur, Lucknow and Mumbai.

“Demand for firecrackers has waned significantly by 35 to 40 per cent,” ASSOCHAM Secretary General D S Rawat said while releasing the survey’s findings.

He said domestic firecracker industry is facing losses of about Rs 1,000 crore due to the illegal import of Chinese firecrackers. “Also, prices of crackers, especially aerial repeaters and cakes, have gone up by 10-15 per cent,” Rawat said.

The survey further said the growing awareness about the adverse impact of crackers on health and environment has also led to drop in interest among people.

The random survey has quizzed 250 fireworks manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi/NCR, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune in the last two weeks.