The Supreme Court verdict restricting the firing crackers has come as a dampener with crackers sales dropping by around 40% across all the cities in the country. It is known news that Supreme court had refused to completely prohibit bursting of crackers on Diwali but it allowed their sale and use for only two hours. The court also allowed southern states including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh to choose the time for bursting firecrackers during Diwali subject to the limit of two hours. This has taken a toll on the sales of crackers this year seriously.
“The all-India market for firecrackers is pegged at Rs 20,000 crore annually. This year, sales across states so far are down by at least 40 per cent as compared to last year. We honour the Supreme Court verdict. It is good for environment but the market has become chaotic after the ruling,” National Secretary General of the Confederation of All India Traders told in a statement. “Considering this seasonality, it wreaks havoc for the industry as livelihood of lakhs of people is associated with the industry,” he added. Manufacturers now seeking a comprehensive policy on firecrackers and a guideline for manufacturing less polluting crackers from the center.
Anyway, compared to previous years, Diwali this year lost its sheen. Even though it is good from the environment point of view, people are urging there should be restrictions on crackers fired during the rallies and public meetings of politicians too. Also, if government controls the manufacturing of crackers by promoting green crackers that don’t pollute environment much, people will be able to celebrate the festival without restrictions.
