KOLKATA: Sabuj Mancha general secretary Nab Dutta on Tuesday urged the government and police to ensure strict compliance with court directives on fireworks and enforce the prescribed time limits during Kali Puja and Diwali. He warned that unchecked noise and smoke continued to affect hospitals, the elderly, patients, children and animals.Dutta was speaking at a civic interaction held from 5.15pm to 7.30pm, where environmentalists, doctors, lawyers, academics and animal rights activists discussed preparations ahead of the festive season. He said firecrackers producing up to 90 decibels should be allowed again, but only within the legal framework. He also said the fireworks industry, which had been shifted from the red category to the white category, should be placed in the orange category, as in other parts of the country. Green crackers, he added, must be tested before sale, while the illegal production, storage and sale of fireworks should be stopped.Participants said that experience each year showed that areas around hospitals were exposed to loud noise late into the night despite restrictions. They called for greater accountability of local authorities, especially in silent zones.Those present included Sukanta Chowdhury, Dr Arnab Sengupta, Dr Kajal Krishna Banik, Bigyan Mancha’s Saurav Chakraborty, Somendra Mohan Ghosh, advocate Dibakar Bhattacharya, Sumita Banerjee, and animal rights activists Anabil Chakraborty and Shantanu Chakraborty. Sabuj Mancha joint secretary Shashanka Deb conducted the meeting along with Debashish Ray and others.Sabuj Mancha said it would hold a day-long awareness campaign across Kolkata on November 6, using tableaux to urge citizens to avoid fireworks and press the government to act in accordance with the law.In a leaflet, the platform appealed to people and puja organisers to celebrate Kali Puja and Diwali without excessive noise and smoke. It said only green crackers should be used during the designated hours: 8pm to 10pm on Kali Puja and Diwali, 6am to 8am on Chhath Puja, and 11.55pm to 12.30am on Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Firecrackers are banned at all other times.The leaflet said microphones should not be used after 10pm and must be fitted with sound limiters. DJs should be prohibited in pandals, processions, roads and public places, while crackers and microphones should be completely banned near hospitals, nursing homes and other silent zones.It said the officer-in-charge of the local police station should be held personally responsible if crackers are burst outside permitted hours or banned crackers are sold. The platform urged residents to report violations promptly to the local authorities.
