Tamil Nadu govt fixes time slot for bursting crackers on Diwali
Chennai, Nov 2 : The Tamil Nadu government Friday said people would be allowed to burst firecrackers between 6 am and 7 am and 7 pm and 8 pm on Diwali, in line with the Supreme Court directive.
A government release also urged people of the state to burst crackers with low decibel and pollution levels.
"Based on the Supreme Court verdict, the Tamil Nadu government permits bursting of crackers between 6 am and 7 am and 7 pm and 8 pm," the release said.
Further, it asked the people to avoid bursting firecrackers near hospitals and places of worship.
The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board would study the air quality seven days before and after the festival in all the corporation limits.
On October 30, the state government had said it would consult stakeholders regarding the Supreme Court's decision of allowing the state to pick a two-hour slot for bursting firecrackers on Diwali.
The apex court had modified its earlier order of fixing an 8-10 pm slot for bursting crackers on Diwali, saying the time would be changed in southern states like Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, but not exceed the two-hour duration.
Diwali falls on November 6 in the state.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
