The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Thursday declared that it will ban bursting or lighting of all fire-crackers at public places during the upcoming Diwali festival.
Additional Municipal Commissioner Suresh Kakani said that any violators shall be penalized and the SOPs in this regard would be issued shortly. The ban has been proposed in view of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and the early winter that has set in.
An official said that bursting firecrackers would release a lot of smoke and other pollutants which would adversely impact the health of Covid-19 patients and increase the risk of infection among the other high-risk categories like children or senior citizens.
Official sources said even the Maharashtra government is likely to impose similar prohibitions on firecrackers in public considering the grim Covid-19 scenario in many parts of the state and apprehensions of a second wave of the infection that may hit in winter.
Maharashtra currently has the highest cases and deaths due to the contagion with maximum number of active patients in Pune, Thane, Mumbai, Nashik, Nagpur, Chandrapur, Raigad and Satara.
Apart from Mumbai, Delhi also has banned the sale of firecrackers, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Tuesday requested people of Delhi to avoid bursting firecrackers as much as possible. Rajasthan government too has decided to ban the sale of firecrackers during the festive season in the state. “Protecting the lives of people is paramount for the government in this challenging time,” Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot had said.
In a similar manner, West Bengal, Odisha, Haryana also pledged not to allow bursting of firecrackers.
(With inputs from IANS)
