To cut down imports: State mulling to set up clusters for production of green crackers

kolkata: The state government is planning to set up clusters to facilitate the manufacture of more green crackers within the state and cut down on imports from Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu .

"There are many poor cracker makers, who do not have space (land) which is required for the manufacture of green crackers. So, we are planning to take up cluster-based approach so that these poor makers can be provided a common space. Our department's Principal Secretary Roshni Sen will take up this matter with her counterpart in MSME department Rajesh Pandey for formation of such cluster. We will have to speak with District Magistrates and Superintendent of Police of the districts to help us in locating land for such clusters,"state Environment minister Manas Bhunia said after a meeting with 250 representatives of cracker manufacturers across the state at Paribesh Bhavan on Monday.

Bhunia said that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has instructed the state government to identify the hurdles in manufacture of green crackers and accordingly take measures to remove them so that the state becomes self reliant in this and stop import from Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu.

"We will play the role of facilitator so that more and more green crackers are made within the state,"the minister added.

The stakeholders raised the issue of inordinate delay in receipt of fire license, which the minister promised to take up with the concerned authorities. "We will take up the matter with concerned officials of the Fire and Emergency Services department and if needed talks will be held in the ministerial level too,"Bhunia said.

"The meeting has been extremely constructive and we are hopeful that the cluster-based approach will augur well for the fire cracker industry," Sukdev Naskar, Secretary of Pradesh Atasbazi Byabasayee Samity (PABS) said.

The PABS in the month of July had brought some 40 odd manufacturing units across the state for hands-on training on the manufacture of green crackers from scientists of NEERI. Hands-on training in respect of more than a dozen firecrackers were taken up at the workshop. NEERI has developed new formulations for flower pots without use of barium nitrate in presence of additives with consequent reduction in emissions.

The next two-day training session will be held on December 20 and 21.