Huge quantities of fire crackers seized in state, 55 arrested

 

PTI, Kolkata, May 23, 2023 :  Police seized a huge quantity of banned firecrackers during raids in different locations in rural West Bengal and arrested several people for their alleged involvement in running illegal manufacturing factories, a police official said on Tuesday.

The raids, which started on Monday, continued in the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday night in different places mainly in Nadia, North and South 24 Parganas districts, the official said.

“So far we have seized nearly 34,000 kg of explosives and banned firecrackers and arrested 55 people for allegedly storing them and running their businesses. These arrests were made during last night’s raids,” he said.

The raids were conducted in the backdrop of incidents of blasts at illegal firecracker manufacturing units in rural Bengal during the past eight days.

At least 16 people were killed in Bengal in three incidents of blasts and a fire which broke out at a godown in Malda district of West Bengal on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the West Bengal government Tuesday decided to close down the ‘Bazi bazar’ at Haral in Baruipur area of South 24 Parganas district, the official said.

All the traders there have been asked to deposit raw materials in their possession with the local police station as a precaution, he added.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is slated to hold a meeting with traders from Haral at the state secretariat after her government’s decision to set up clusters of firecracker manufacturing units.