Enforcement Of Norms Is Poor, Say Activists Diwali this year may be deafening, as tests reveal that most crackers available in the market are way noisier beyond permitted levels. On Monday, NGO Awaaz Foundation along with the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) conducted aseries of tests on various firecrackers bought from the market to check if their noise levels adhered to the norms. The team tested around 25 samples of serial fire-crackers burst on the ground and in the air, atom bombs and aerial crackers. “Of the five samples for serial crackers and atom bombs only one did not violate the norms, while aerial crackers pushed the decibel limit,” said Sumaira Abdulali, convenor, Awaaz Foundation. She said few crackers were available in the market. “Those available were leftovers from the Ganesh festival,” she said. The team tested serial firecrackers with 1,000, 2,000 and 5,000 shells. The decibel limit for these crackers is 105dB but all, except one, went up to 122dB. For single fire-crackers like atom bombs, the limit is between 112-125dB but the loudest went up to 127.4dB. The high decibels were despite regular sample checks on fire-crackers by the Petroleum and Explosive Safety Organisation (PESO) for noise levels and chemical content. But PESO is yet to specify the results of the chemical content tests on its website, despite a 2005 directive from the Supreme Court and a 2012 reiteration by the chief information commissioner. Incidentally, if the commissioner’s orders are not complied with, then anyone can complain to the commission which will have to initiate action. Further, noise level data on the PESO website is also more than a year old. P C Srivastava, chief controller of explosives, said, “I am unaware of the directives, but if they are there I will enquire why it is not being followed.” The website of the Nagpur-based organisation displays a 2008 letter to manufacturers with general specifications for only four varieties of crackers. Abdulali said specifications on fire-crackers were useless unless followed by action, adding PESO should ensure that manufacturers adhered to them. This, she said, would happen only if crackers were regularly tested and PESO revealed their chemical contents. The data, she said, was important as it would enable police to take action while licensing fire-cracker dealers. “Fire-crackers are used in Mumbai at events throughout the year. It is important that the data is made available to citizens well before Diwali so that they may inform themselves of the types of firecrackers they would be permitted to use both under the Noise Pollution Rules and under the Hazardous Chemical Rules,’’ she said. “Nothing seems to change. The same crackers are available in the market year after year. The only positive side is the increased awareness and the fact that people are averse to bursting fire-crackers. But enforcement continues to be pathetic,” said Abdulali. MPCB officials said the tests were part of an awareness drive. “We shall send the report to the explosives department and to our offices across Maharashtra and to the police. But there will be no raids or seizures,” said an official. Abdulali said more tests were planned on October 31, closer to Diwali, to ascertain if the report made a difference. SUPREME COURT’S 2005 DIRECTIVES 1 On a comparison of the two systems, i.e. the present system of evaluating firecrackers on basis of noise levels, and where firecrackers shall be evaluated on the basis of chemical composition, we feel the latter method is more practical and workable in Indian circumstances 2 The Department of Explosives (DOE) shall undertake necessary research activity and come out with chemical formulae for each type or category or class of firecrackers. The DOE shall specify the proportion/ composition and weight of every chemical used in making fire-crackers 3 DOE can divide crackers into two categories (i) Sound-emitting and (ii) Colour/light emitting 4 There will be a complete ban on bursting sound-emitting crackers between 10pm and 6am. It isn’t necessary to impose time restrictions on bursting of colour/light emitting crackers 5 Every manufacturer shall on the box of each firecracker mention that it satisfies the requirement as laid down by the DOE 6 Firecrackers for export may be manufactured bearing higher noise levels subject to conditions (only if the manufacturer has an export order; noise levels should meet standards in the country where the crackers are intended to be exported; they should have different colour packing from those intended to be sold in India; they must have a printed declaration, like ‘not for sale in India’)