Firecracker stall licence: SC verdict to be followed

The Police Commissionerate has received 92 applications from vendors willing to set up firecrackers shops for Deepavali.

Licences will be issued by the Police Commissioner after the scrutiny of applications, said DCP (Law and Order) Hanumantaraya. He was speaking during the SC/ST grievance meet here, on Sunday.

Hanumantaraya said that the NoCs (No objection certificates) issued by Mangaluru City Corporation, fire and emergency services department, local police station and revenue department were per-requisites for the issue of licence.

“Fireworks should not exceed the permissible sound level of 125 decibel (dB) at a radius of 4 meters from the place of the burst, as per Environment Protection Rules. The act has to be adhered by both the manufacturers and sellers of firecrackers.”

Low emission crackers

In its verdict issued on October 23, the Supreme Court had clearly stated that low-emission firecrackers could be burst only between 8 pm and 10 pm during Deepavali and between 11.55 pm and 12.30 am during the New Year celebrations.

“The Supreme Courtverdict will be considered by the police commissionerate while issuing the licences. The applicants will be summoned for verification by the local police station,” Hanumantaraya added.

The DCP’s reaction came in the wake of a complaint by one Mukhesh that last year licences for setting up firecracker stalls were issued after Deepavali.

This deprived the applicants, belonging to Scheduled Caste /Scheduled Tribe community, of setting up the stalls during the festival.

Cases against violations

Special drives have been carried out and 68 cases have been registered against pasting display stickers on autorickshaws, the DCP said.

He, meanwhile, directed police officer concerned to solve the case in which a rickshaw driver, a beneficiary of Dr B R Ambedkar Development Corporation, was allegedly harassed by a Karnataka Rakshana Vedike activist.

Duping consumers

Parvathi Chembugudde alleged that some electronic shops are duping the customers by offering ponzi schemes.

Tilak Kumar urged the police department to initiate strict action against manual scavenging.

The DCP said that the engineer concerned will be held responsible for any such act, as manual scavenging is prohibited.

Dalita Sangharsha Samiti State Organising Secretary Devdas said that the SC/ST Atrocities (Prevention) Act was not being effectively implemented by the police department.

Superintendent of Police of Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement C B Vedamurthy was present.