Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): In the aftermath of the Harda incident, the Bhopal district administration took swift action by sealing all firecracker shops in one go without prior notice. Even shops that were compliant with regulations were not spared and were told to submit relevant documents by the weekend.

Barring a few, the administrative officials shuttered the firecracker shops at Halalpur. The 15 shops of firecrackers at Halalpur have a license to run their business around the year, but still, the shops were sealed citing one reason or another, said the traders.

The owners of a few shops which were operating on the day – though on papers they are sealed – were told to keep their units shut for the next 4-5 days until all relevant documents were submitted. No notice was given to them to shut their shops, they added.

Mahesh Chugani of Mahadev firecrackers, No notice was handed over, the administrative team while sealing the shops verbally asked us to follow instructions and submit the required documents. The traders have been asked to submit documents including licenses, and give in writing stock status, safety measures compliance, etc., in the collectorate.

Some of the traders said that overstock is the main reason behind the action. Firecrackers traders association president Daulat Ram said, No notice was given by the district administration. The officials asked us to give details of the inventory and stock in writing at the collectorate.

We have stored firecrackers for events like marriage and other celebratory events like the Consecration of Ram Lalla idol at Ayodhya temple. We are still left with stock and the same has been stored at the shops. We clarified the matter before the authorities who had come for the checking. We have submitted our clarification of the overstock, he added.

Following a fire incident in 1997, the crackers market was shifted from Categorized Market (Kabadkhana market) to Halalpur, which was then an outskirt area. However, now the entire area has turned into a commercial hub and it also has sizable residential complexes, but we are not to be blamed for it, the traders said.