Sivakasi is fighting for survival, thanks to the ban on firecrackers in Delhi, regulations in several other cities, pandemic-imposed sales dips, the ban on the use of barium nitrate...
A complete ban on firecrackers in Delhi until January 1, the government's refusal to grant licences for sales in Karnataka, and restrictions in the Noida region are adversely affecting the business of manufacturers in Tamil Nadu's Sivakasi, which produces over 90 per cent of India's fireworks. According to industry players, demand has decreased by 20 per cent compared to last year. Moreover, the ban on the use of barium nitrate and the manufacturing and sale of joint fireworks is also impacting demand.
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Enter the fireworks city of Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu and you can smell a familiar mix of sulphur, potassium nitrate, aluminium and carbon - familiar because if you've ever burst crackers, say on Diwali or Onam, chances are they were made here. Almost every household used to contribute to India's festive joy by contributing almost 90 per cent of the fireworks made in the country. Before the pandemic, around 300,000 people worked in the industry directly and another 500,000 indirectly. Located 540 kilometres from Chennai, Sivakasi is famous for its fireworks and crackers, along with printing and matches, but is almost a ghost town these days.
In the third of a six-part series T E Narasimhan finds out how the hub of India's firecrackers industry is coping after more than a month of the note ban.
Sivakasi of today is not the Sivakasi of yesteryear.
Nine workers, including five women, died and 10 others were injured in a blaze at a fireworks-manufacturing unit in Sivakasi on Thursday, a senior police official said.
Some experts opine that green crackers are yet not practical and question government's move to promote them.
About 1,070 units in Sivakasi can manufacture fireworks worth Rs 6,000-9,000 crore.
The town produces 85 per cent of the country's fireworks.
Sivakasi hopes the new government will check the smuggling of Chinese fireworks and remove the higher charges on local units imposed by the UPA government.
The changeover to green crackers after extensive experiments marks a revival of the industry which has over 1,000 manufacturing units around Sivakasi and used to clock an annual turnover of over Rs 6,000 crore.
The fireworks industry of Sivakasi has been hit by restrictive explosives laws and growing Chinese domination of the sector.
Three persons were charred to death and 13 seriously injured in a blaze that swept through a private fireworks factory in Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu after an accidental explosion. Police said the fire also resulted in a series of explosions in the unit.
The owner of a Sivakasi cracker manufacturing unit where a fire on September 5 claimed 39 lives was arrested on Sunday on culpable homicide not amounting to murder and other charges from Samayanallur in this district.
Three persons were on Friday charred to death and an equal number suffered burns in a fire mishap at an illegal cottage fireworks unit, barely three weeks after a devastating blaze in a cracker unit claimed 39 lives. The mishap occurred at a cracker manufacturing unit in Vijayakarisalkulam near Sivakasi, said the police.
That Sivakasi has also killed over time, albeit very slowly, numerous child-workers engaged in matchbox production is scarcely registered on the national conscience, says Shreekant Sambrani
Following a series of accidents at numerous fireworks units in the recent past that brought it disrepute, municipal authorities at Sivakasi have launched a campaign to change the town spelling to 'Sivahaasi' in the belief that it will prevent further mishaps and bring prosperity.
The firecracker industry in Sivakasi, in interior Tamil Nadu, from where 95 per cent of the Indian output comes from, has said production has declined 20 per cent this year.
Fire occurred when some 'rocket' varieties being tested for quality ignited other crackers put to dry.
Five people were arrested on Thursday in connection with the devastating fire at a cracker manufacturing unit at Mudhalipatti near Sivakasi, even as the toll mounted to 39 with three more persons succumbing to burns. The arrested were four people who had taken the Omshakthi fireworks factory complex, where the fire broke out, on lease and its foreman, police said.
In one of the worst fire tragedies in Tamil Nadu, 54 persons were charred to death and 50 others injured on Wednesday when a devastating blaze swept through a cracker factory complex at nearby Mudhalipatti.
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The mishap occurred around 12.30 pm on Saturday in the chemical mixing room of the firecracker-making unit in the village.
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According to the Indian Fireworks' Manufacturers' Association, the ban would wipe out sales of around Rs 600 crore during the upcoming Deepavali season.
Justice GK Ilanthiraiyan, before whom the batch of petitions came up for hearing on Monday, directed the state home secretary and the director general of police to file their counter and posted the matter for further hearing on September 22.
Bodies burnt beyond recognition and scores of injured lying all round presented a gory picture of a battleground at a nearby fireworks unit where a massive fire broke out in which 52 people perished.
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Diwali, the festival of lights and prosperity, is a time to celebrate across India. But for Sivakasi, a town in southern Tamil Nadu, this festival is probably a little more special.
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The Supreme Court Wednesday said that under the guise of green crackers, banned articles are being used by firecracker manufacturers and reiterated that its earlier order banning joint crackers must be complied with by every state.
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The fire started in the afternoon at the Vadivel Fireworks Factory at Meenampatti village in Virudhunagar district, 70 km from Madurai.
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