Much to the plight of traders just two days ahead of Diwali festival, the required licenses were not granted by the government for setting up of cracker shops. The skeletal administration in the city states that the bulk of officials responsible for moving relevant files were deputed for relief operations in the Hudhud cyclone-hit areas in North Andhra.
The district administration sanctioned licences for 300 traders in Krishna district and for about 125 crackers shops in Vijayawada city last year. But, this time round, the process is yet to begin. It is mandatory for traders to take permission from Station Fire Officers (SFOs) of State Disaster Response, Fire and Emergency Services department, who in turn will visit the site and issue No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for grant of licences to Revenue and Police departments.
Krishna District Fire Officer (DFO) V. Srinivas said the licensing process was not started as many SFOs were on cyclone duty.
