Banned firecrackers being smuggled from UP and Bihar: Gurugram Police

Local manufacturing units in Haryana are also supplying illegal crackers, cops added. According to police, nearly 12,000kg of banned firecrackers were seized in the last 10 days

At least 23 people have been arrested in the last 10 days for allegedly being involved in selling, manufacturing and transporting banned firecrackers in Gurugram, police said.

Police seized 8,343kg of banned firecrackers from a warehouse in Dabodha village in Farrukhnagar on October 14. (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

Interrogation of suspects has revealed that firecrackers are being smuggled from Tamil Nadu, Saran in Bihar, and Muzzafarnagar and Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh. Local manufacturing units in Haryana are also supplying illegal crackers, cops added. According to police, nearly 12,000kg of banned firecrackers were seized in the last 10 days.

Police have formed teams and placed barricades at all borders connecting Delhi, Nuh and Rajasthan to check the movement of banned firecrackers. Inderjeet Yadav, deputy superintendent of police (DSP), chief minister’s flying squad, said that middlemen who used to work in Delhi’s Sadar market are involved in finalising orders from UP and Bihar. “Illegal manufacturing units are still making traditional crackers as the cost of chemicals is very low compared to green crackers. The price of banned crackers is less and people prefer to buy them and the demand is still high in rural areas. The consignments seized last week were brought from Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu,” he said.

Police seized 8,343kg of banned firecrackers from a warehouse in Dabodha village in Farrukhnagar on October 14, Yadav said. He added that many small-scale units are also manufacturing banned crackers and are stocking them for sale ahead of Diwali. “There are manufacturing units in Jhajjar too which are producing banned crackers. Some license holders are also involved in illegal manufacturing to make a quick buck,” he said.

Police said that manufacturing units are also buying firecrackers from other states as the profit margins are fairly high. According to Preet Pal Sangwan, assistant commissioner of police (crime), more than 50,000 banned firecrackers were smuggled into Gurugram during the month of October. “We have recovered 1,1946kg of banned firecrackers from different areas till Tuesday. Over 2,000kg of banned crackers were sized from wholesale outlets in Gadoli, Pataudi and Farrukhnagar where shopkeepers were openly selling them at a discounted price. There are many local agencies who sell crackers to shopkeepers at throwaway prices during the week leading to Diwali,” he said.

Yadav further informed that illegal manufacturing units in UP and Bihar have hired drivers who are smuggling these crackers hidden in consignments of groceries and other raw materials. “These drivers are paid ₹30,000 in addition to their salaries if they successfully smuggle the items,” he said. Crime teams are investigating to ascertain the volume of banned crackers being manufactured and the identity of middlemen involved in selling them.

.