Despite ban, crackers sold openly

Jaswant Shetra

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, November 8

Despite ban on the sale of fireworks in Jagraon, crackers were sold openly in different parts of the city. Though the police department had issued strict warning to the fireworks dealers of the city against selling fireworks, sale of firecrackers continued unabated.

The police officials had been keeping a strict vigil in various markets to check the sale of fireworks.

The district administration had issued very few licenses to the firework traders in the district this year. There are around half a dozen main fireworks traders based in Jagraon but not even a single trader of Jagraon was issued license by the district administration. Despite that some fireworks dealers had stocked huge amount of crackers in their godowns and houses.

The police had conducted raids at the stores and houses of at least three main fireworks dealers of Jagraon on Monday and seized fireworks worth several lakh rupees stored illegally. After seizing a huge amount of fireworks from these fireworks dealers, the police had also registered cases against them under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Explosives Act.