Strict restrictions have been issued in the district. ADC Dr. Harjinder Singh Bedi, exercising his powers under Section 163 of the Indian Civil Defense Code, 2023, has issued orders regarding the sale, purchase, and use of firecrackers within the Gurdaspur district. According to the orders, fireworks will only be permitted from 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM on Diwali, October 20th. Similarly, fireworks will only be permitted from 4:00 AM to 5:00 AM and 9:00 PM on Guruparv, and from 11:55 PM to 12:30 AM on Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Outside of these times, fireworks will be completely banned.
License Zones Declared:
There will also be a complete ban on the use of fireworks within 100 meters of silence zones such as government offices, courts, hospitals, educational institutions, religious places, or any other place declared as a silence zone by the competent authority. According to the orders, the designated places for the sale of firecrackers in Gurdaspur district are the ground in front of the Guru Nanak Dev University Regional Campus in Gurdaspur, the cattle market in Batala, the Dussehra ground in Dinanagar, the Dana Mandi in Dera Baba Nanak, and the sports stadium on Railway Road in Fatehgarh Churian.
As per the instructions of the Punjab Government’s Industry and Commerce Department, the time for selling firecrackers has been fixed from 10:00 AM to 7:30 PM. As per the High Court orders, licenses will be granted only to those traders whose applications represent 20 percent of the total received, selected through a lottery chaired by the ADC. Dr. Bedi stated that these orders will be mandatorily followed until January 1, 2026. Bursting fireworks before or after the prescribed time not only disturbs public peace but also increases the risk of accidents and pollution. Therefore, these orders must be strictly followed.
Designated Places for the Sale and Purchase of Fireworks
The orders issued have designated places for the sale and purchase of firecrackers in Gurdaspur district. The Ground in Gurdaspur, opposite Guru Nanak Dev University Regional Campus, Gurdaspur, the Cattle Market in Batala, the Dussehra Ground in Dinanagar, the Grain Market for Dera Baba Nanak/Kalanour, Dera Baba Nanak and Fatehgarh Churian, Railway Road, and the Sports Stadium, Fatehgarh Churian have been designated. Fireworks can be sold from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The orders state that the use of fireworks/firecrackers disturbs public peace, increases the risk of accidents, and pollutes the environment. It also increases the risk of damage to government and private property. Therefore, it is extremely important to ban it. The sale of firecrackers will be allowed at the above-mentioned designated locations from 10 am to 7:30 pm and apart from this, no other location within the Gurdaspur district will be used for the purchase/sale of firecrackers and fireworks.
