NASHIK: The civic body has received a very poor response to its auction of firecracker stalls at 26 locations across Nashik city this year. The Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) had planned to auction 322 stalls, but only 111 stalls have so far been auctioned.
NMC officials said the pandemic that has been going on for the past one-and-a-half years is a major reason. Moreover, there have been restrictions on the bursting of firecrackers. Firecrackers with noise levels above 125 decibel (dB) are prohibited as per the MPCB norms.
NMC has received Rs 34.36 lakh as revenue through the auction of 111 stalls — an average of Rs 31,000 each. This includes a clean environment tax of Rs 3,000 on each stall and Rs 500 fire tax per day for every stall.
Earlier, the civic administration had proposed a ban on firecrackers in the city, but the general body of the NMC had turned down the proposal and allowed the auction for the firecrackers stalls. Accordingly, the NMC conducted the auction.
