TN CM Requests Odisha To Reconsider Ban On Firecrackers

Bhubaneswar: Tamil Nadu has requested Odisha and three other states to reconsider the ban on sale and use of firecrackers during Diwali this year also.

Citing that the ban on sale and use of firecrackers would come as a big blow for the manufactures of the products, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has written to his counterparts of Odisha, Delhi, Rajasthan and Haryana, to reconsider the decision regarding ban on sale of firecrackers in their respective states.

Stating that his government is aiming to revive the MSME sector through different interventions after the COVID pandemic crippled the economy of TN, Stalin wrote that Sivakasi (largest firecracker manufacturing hub in the country) is one of the major MSME’s in TN and around 8 lakh people depend on firecracker manufacture for their livelihood. Such decision to impose ban will jeopardize livelihoods of lakhs of people, he added.

“It has been brought to my notice that your Government has imposed a ban on sale of firecrackers during this festive season (Diwali-2021). I understand that you have taken this decision based on concerns regarding air pollution. I wish to draw your attention to the fact that the Supreme Court has already banned certain categories of polluting firecrackers and now, green crackers with significantly less emissions are being manufactured. Therefore a blanket ban on firecrackers is not reasonable,” he wrote in the letter.

Last month, Odisha had announced a ban on sale and use of firecrackers during this Diwali also with an aim to check the spread of COVID-19 infection.