Law enforcement agencies did not find even a single person violating the pollution control norms during Diwali and social distancing norms during Chhath despite restrictions set by government bodies going for a toss during the festive season.
No person was booked in Ranchi under relevant sections of the law for violating the government guidelines to check pollution on Diwali, a highly-placed official in the district administration said on Monday.
“Nobody lodged any complaint with the local police against the violators during Diwali, so no FIRs were lodged. Even suo moto cases were not filed,” said an IAS officer in Ranchi, requesting not to be named.
An order issued by the Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board (JSPCB) two days prior to Diwali stated that people found violating the rules set by the pollution watchdog will be booked under section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Prevention and Control of Pollution Act 1981. A copy of the order is in possession of The Pioneer.
The JSPCB order set a time limit of two hours – from 8pm to 10pm – for bursting firecrackers across the state, and allowed only “green crackers” in at least 14 urban areas of Jharkhand, including Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad and Bokaro. Besides, bursting firecrackers in public places was also prohibited.
However, Diwali celebrations started as early as 6pm on November 14 and the fireworks continued unabated till late in the night, causing noise as well as air pollution. In fact, Diwali noise this year was higher than last year in some parts of the city, JSPCB officials said.
Member secretary of JSPCB, Rajiv Lochan Bakshi said that the pollution watchdog only issued guidelines for pollution control, and it was up to the law enforcement agencies to ensure that the rules are not violated. “We cannot take actions against individuals,” he said.
While the government permitted sale of only “green crackers” in the city, there was no effective mechanism to check whether cracker traders followed the rules, sources said. A highly placed source in the government said that the guideline for Diwali was issued too late, and it was impossible to follow all the rules when the festival was only 48 hours away.
“Green crackers are not even available in all parts of Jharkhand. Most of the traders already had ordinary crackers in their stock,” the source said.
Ranchi Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) SK Jha on said that he did not have the exact data on the number of people who were booked for violating the pollution control norms during Diwali.
Devotees thronged Chhath ghats during Chhath and social distancing was not maintained in most of the water bodies across the city. However, no violators of Covid-19 precautionary measures were held during the festival, officials said.