Mumbai: In a belated move, the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) started cracking down on firecracker stalls which were found to be defying the terms and conditions mentioned in the licenses issued by the fire brigade department.
However, the largely cosmetic action was initiated a day after Diwali, when most of the stall owners had already sold out the majority of their stock.
“While action was being taken against violators, an offence was registered at the Navghar police station against two people who had set up a stall in the Indralok area of Bhayandar (east),” said chief fire officer Prakash Borade.
Action on a complaint filed by fire station officer Dilip Ranaware, an offence under section 286 of the IPC for negligent conduct with respect to explosive substance and relevant sections of the Maharashtra Police Act (1951) was registered against the duo at the Navghar police station on Wednesday evening.
According to the police, the stall owner had taken a license from the MBMC, but was found to be keeping firecrackers on the gutter, thus posing a risk to pedestrians and approaching customers.
Although there is a limit prescribed by the fire officers on the number of firecrackers a trader can keep, majority of the shops operating in the twin-city exceeded the limit, even as the rule of minimum distance was also flouted at many places where a row of stalls had come up side-by-side -- sans properly operating fire-fighting equipment.
The licensing system of the fire-brigade has also come under the scanner for turning a blind eye to violations.
The MBMC claims to have identified 20 open grounds where vendors were allowed to establish their shops and carry out their trading activities in a safer environment.
Subsequently, around 135 stalls were awarded permissions; however, the actual numbers were said to be much higher.
