The district administration has identified three places for the sale of firecrackers on Diwali in Dehradun. For sale at other places, it will be necessary to follow permission and safety rules. Applications for temporary license can be made from 19 to 30 October.

Dehradun: The district administration has identified three public places for the sale of firecrackers in Dehradun Municipal Corporation area during Diwali. These include Rangers Ground, 26 Park Road near Hindu National Inter College and the old Roadways bus stand located on Gandhi Road. To sell firecrackers at places other than these, permission from the administration and prescribed safety standards will have to be followed. Action will be taken against selling without license or violating rules.

Firecracker market will be set up at these three places in Dehradun

Dehradun district administration has made arrangements regarding firecracker shops on Diwali. This time, firecrackers will not be sold arbitrarily in the Municipal Corporation area. For this, the administration has identified Rangers Ground, 26 Park Road near Hindu National Inter College and the old Roadways bus stand located on Gandhi Road. While setting up firecracker shops at these places, prescribed rules and safety standards will have to be followed.

District Magistrate Dr. Ashish Chauhan clarified that for the sale of firecrackers at places other than the designated places, permission will have to be taken from the concerned authorities. Action will be taken against those setting up shops without license or violating the rules. The aim of the administration is to stop uncontrolled selling in crowded areas during the festival and reduce the chances of incidents like fire.

On Saturday, a meeting was held with firecracker traders and officials of departments at Rishiparna Auditorium of Collectorate. In this, necessary instructions were given regarding sale, storage, fire safety and traffic arrangements of firecrackers. Additional District Magistrate KK Mishra, Additional District Magistrate Administration Smrita Parmar, Deputy District Magistrate Ravindra Jwantha, representatives of the Trade Board and officials of various departments were present in the meeting.

Ban on sale in schools, hospitals and crowded markets

The administration has clarified that the sale of firecrackers will be banned in schools, hospitals, courts, religious places and densely populated markets. Apart from the three designated places, for setting up a shop at any suitable place, permission will have to be taken as per the prescribed procedure from the Municipal Magistrate, the concerned Sub District Magistrate and the Police Officer.

It will be mandatory for firecracker traders to obtain a temporary license before setting up shop. Applications for this can be made from October 19 to October 30. The validity of the license has been set from November 3 to November 9. The fee for temporary license has been fixed at Rs 850. Shopkeepers will have to follow the prescribed procedure while applying and keep in mind the conditions of the license while selling.

It is mandatory to have CCTV surveillance and fire fighting equipment.

To strengthen the security arrangements in firecracker markets, the administration has given instructions to install CCTV cameras. Live feed of these cameras will have to be made available to the control room, so that the sales points can be monitored. Arrangements will also be made to set up pink booths and deploy women policemen for the safety of women in major markets.

Special patrolling will be done by the police and fire department in dense settlements. Licensed shopkeepers will have to keep fire extinguishers and other necessary safety equipment. Apart from this, electrical connections, safe wiring and inflammable materials present in the shops will also be checked, so that any possible accident can be prevented.

The administration has also given instructions to take action against those encroaching by placing carts, tables or other items on public roads. Illegal firecracker sale and storage will be monitored. The emphasis of the district administration is to ensure that the sale of firecrackers during Diwali is as per the prescribed rules and that along with the safety of the common people, the traffic system is also not affected.