Tamil Nadu fireworks industry to move SC on Friday in the firecrackers verdict

Tamil Nadu Fireworks and Amorces Manufacturers’ Association has decided to file a clarification petition in the Supreme Court over its Tuesday verdict banning manufacture and sale of the certain type of firecrackers and those produced using certain chemicals.

“We are going to file a clarification petition in the Supreme Court on Friday seeking more time to comply with its order. We have made huge investments and manufactured the firecrackers for the last one year for the Diwali festival as there was no court stay. We will incur a huge loss if the court order was enforced all of a sudden,” TNFAMA president A. Asaithambi told DNA.

On Tuesday, the Apex court has allowed manufacture of only the green and reduced emission firecrackers while banning joined firecrackers (series crackers or ‘laris’). The court also banned the use of barium salt in the production of the firecrackers and directed the Petroleum and Explosive Safety Organisation (PESO) submit a report on reducing the usage of Aluminium in two weeks. The judgment also reduced the time for bursting crackers during Diwali between 8 pm and 10 pm across the country.

Asaithambi said the industry representatives would meet Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami at his residence on Friday morning to highlight the adverse impact of the Apex court verdict. “We will appeal to the state government to implead without clarification petition,” he said, adding that the manufacturers were seeking a breathing time to sell the existing stocks.

“Destroying the manufactured firecrackers too will cause the same level of pollution as that of bursting it,” he said, pointing out that they would suspend further production of the firecrackers.

Supreme Court’s ban on joined crackers or garland crackers which approximately accounts for 25 to 30 % of the total firecrackers production would cause a huge loss to the manufacturers, Asaithambi said, adding that green crackers still remains only in paper and it would take a long time to begin production of such crackers after getting all the statutory approvals.

Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu is home to over 1000 fireworks industries accounting for the manufacture of 90% of the firecrackers production in the country. It provides employment to eight lakh people.