No firecrackers on Christmas or New Year: Gautam Budh Nagar DM

Gautam Budh Nagar district magistrate BN Singh has asked all police stations to ensure that no banned firecrackers are sold or used in their respective jurisdictions.

The Gautam Budh district administration has told the concerned departments to ensure that no firecrackers are sold or used on the occasions of Christmas and New Year, making it clear that there are no ‘green’ firecrackers, as mandated by the Supreme Court (SC), in the district.

The Gautam Budh Nagar administration has said no to the use of firecrackers on Christmas or New Year, making it clear that there are no ‘green’ firecrackers, as mandated by the Supreme Court (SC), in the district. (PTI File / Representative Image)

District magistrate BN Singh has asked all police stations to ensure that no banned firecrackers are sold or used in their respective jurisdictions. “We have not been informed of the reduced emission (improved crackers and green crackers) firecrackers by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO), so it is clear to us that green firecrackers are not available in the district,” Singh, in his letter to station house officers, said.

The administration has made it clear that the licenses given during Diwali were for a short period, would not be valid now. In fact, no license to sell firecrackers is legal in the district. Anybody found selling or bursting crackers will have to face legal action, as per the orders of the apex court.

The district administration faced criticism from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for non-compliance with the SC order regarding the sale and bursting of crackers on Diwali. The administration now wants to ensure that no banned firecrackers are used on either Christmas, New Year’s eve, or New Year’s day.

Officials said they were focusing on New Year’s eve, as most firecrackers in Noida were used on this night.

The administration started a drive to spread awareness on the SC order on firecrackers on December 10, which will continue till December 31, to ensure no cracker bursting takes place in the festive season.

People who burst banned firecrackers will be booked under Section 151 (arrest to prevent the commission of cognizable offences) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), and FIRs against sellers will be registered under Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), officials said.

Under Section 151 of the CrPc, a person can be arrested and a surety bond of ₹50,000 taken from them. The maximum punishment under Section 188 of the IPC is a jail term up to one month and a fine of ₹100.