Visakhapatnam: Firecracker prices skyrocket

Visakhapatnam: This year get burnt the moment you touch the fireworks. Not literally. But yes, their prices are sure to burn a hole in the pocket. This is the situation across the State.

After two years of lull, when the revellers as well as traders pin hopes to see a livelier Diwali, the cost of fireworks soar. Reports from other districts indicate that compared to the last year, there is an increase of 25 to 30 percent in the prices of fireworks. Hike in the fuel price has left an impact on Diwali celebrations.

Along with this, preference accorded to using green crackers and stall permission given only to those who had paid 18 percent GST are some of the other reasons for the increase in the cost of firecrackers and less interest shown by dealers.

Last year, restrictions were imposed on bursting crackers and the stress on the use of green crackers that too for two hours literally made people give up lighting crackers and usher in lamp-laden festivities instead.

This year too, it appears that there will less of crackers. Annually, the stalls are arranged in major parts of the State. But last time, keeping the prevailing pandemic situation in view, permission was restricted to fixed locations.

This led to little interest as many could not travel for 15 to 20 kms to bring home a bagful of fireworks. In Visakhapatnam, for example, this year cracker stalls will be set up at Simhachalam, Pendurthi, Gopalapatnam, NAD, Kancharapalem, Malkapuram, Gajuwaka, near RTC Complex and other areas.

Unlike last Diwali, more counters will dot the city to make the firecrackers accessible to people. But the high prices are likely to play spoilsport. Similar reports are there from other districts as well. P Eshwar Reddy, a firecracker trader, said, "Compared to last Diwali, the price of firecrackers is certainly high.

Hike in transportation charges, dip in the production volume, stress on the use of green crackers in parts of the country are some of the prime reasons behind the increased cost of the fireworks."

Normally, the Diwali sale begins three days ahead of the festivities. However, the stall owners mention that they are yet to get permission to set up counters even though there is hardly a day left for the festival.

Gopi, another firecracker trader, says, "Since we have no clue about when we would get permission or the expected business volume, we ended up sourcing minimum stocks for the sale. At least we don't want to take any risk by investing a huge sum on the stocks."