Prayagraj: Around 800 temporary firecracker shops will be set up at 90 open designated slots across Prayagraj district from Nov 6 to 9 for the Diwali festival.
The fire department has extended the timeline for applying for a temporary firecracker shop licence to Oct 30. The officials said, “All the vendors and traders must follow an 11-point fire safety guideline or their temporary licence would be cancelled. Besides, the shops should be set up within a 25 square metre area and away from residential colonies, educational institutes, cinema halls, auditoriums, hospitals, markets, shops, factories, railway lines, highways, and religious places. Moreover, parking of vehicles is also restricted at least 50 metres away from the shops.
Besides, selling firecrackers anywhere apart from the designated areas will invite stringent police action, including a possible penalty, said the official. “Station officers of all police stations have been asked to keep an eye on those involved in the illegal trade of firecrackers in the city,” he added. The officials have also intensified an exercise to identify new open or designated spots including colleges and Ramlila grounds for the sale of firecrackers. The temporary firecracker sale licence will be given on a first-come, first-served basis. All temporary shops will be set up under a tin-shed or asbestos sheet (not tents or cloth, thermocol, flex, plastic) and maintain a distance of at least three metres between two shops. No shop is allowed under high-tension wire lines. Importantly, two firecracker shops are not allowed to be set up opposite each other. All firecracker-selling shops will be placed under no-smoking zones. Each shopkeeper must have adequate water stock in a drum along with buckets at the shop. Besides, each shop should have an adequate stock of firefighting equipment, including five fire extinguishers, water, and two sacks full of dry sand. A senior fire official made it clear that no minor or person with a history of mental illness will be allowed to sell crackers or sit at the shop.