Nalabanta all set for fireworks

ASKA: Nalabanta, a hamlet on the outskirts of Aska, is popular as Sivakasi of South Orissa. Making fireworks is almost a way of life here. The inhabitants, mostly poor, make a quick buck by manufacturing fireworks for Diwali and sundry other functions. A number of mishaps due to blasts has failed to deter the people from ‘playing with fire’. Rather they have taken the mishaps in their stride. During the last three decades, at least 25 villagers have died in the blasts while manufacturing crackers. The deceased include women and children. The blasts normally occur just before Diwali. Though manufacturing fireworks is a household business here, the village has only a handful of licensed manufacturers. The rest have been making crackers illegally for decades. Of late, the number of accidents has multiplied due to unskilled workers. The elders of the village say the small-time fireworks-makers should form a cooperative to get licence to manufacture fireworks in an organised way so that the risks can be minimised. But no attempt has been made in this direction yet. Villagers make fireworks as per order for various occasions like weddings, rallies and idol immersions apart from Diwali. But they eagerly wait for Diwali as it is their main source of income. Sources said fireworks were first manufactured in the village under the patronage of the King of Dharakote. After Independence, the villagers took it up as a profession. They earn up to ` 50 lakh a year, most of which comes from Diwali. The finished goods are supplied throughout Orissa and Andhra Pradesh.  The village is known for manufacturing hugely popular ‘Aska Chakra’, an innovative cracker made of palm leaves. This cracker spins like a ‘chakra’, rises high like a rocket and explodes mid-air. The village usually takes centrestage during Diwali.   But this year it is in the news much before the festival for a different reason. Police have cracked down on illegal  manufacturers. On Sunday, police raided five cracker-making units in the village and seized 25 bags of explosive materials. No arrests were, however, made.