As per the Telugu calendar, the city is gearing up to celebrate Deepavali festival on Sunday (November 12). The authorities concerned including those from City Police, Eye Hospital, Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation and Fire Department have mobilised their teams to ensure a peaceful Deepavali without any untoward incident.
Citizens seem to be preferring to buy eco-friendly lamps at pottery shops located in various areas such as Poorna Market, Gopalapatnam, Kancharapalem, Pendurthi, Madhurawada, Bheemili and Anakapalli.
“I like to buy clay lamps from pottery shops every Deepavali. Other than the price, I don’t see any change in the product. A dozen lamp cost around ₹60,” said P. Mahalakshmi, an Andhra University faculty, from MVP Colony.
Fire officials said that no untoward incidents reported in the city so far. The department permitted at least 950 fire cracker stalls, including 450 in the city and 500 in remaining other parts of the Visakhapatnam region comprising erstwhile Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts.
Speaking to The Hindu, Visakhapatnam Regional Fire Officer D. Niranjan Reddy said, “This time we have set up around 50 fire outposts in the region including in the city, each of which has three firemen with a fire extinguisher. These are additional security measures in addition to our normal services during the festival until November 13.”
The GVMC officials said they mobilised 5,607 sanitary workers during the day and 380 workers at night for cleaning the city during and after the festival. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits, including masks, gloves and shoes, were also distributed to keep workers safe during work.
GVMC Commissioner Saikanth Varma said that all measures have been taken to prevent pollution during Deepavali celebrations in the city. As part of Swachh Bharat guidelines
Mission 2.0, Ministry of Home and Urban Affairs on ‘Swachh Diwali’, GVMC started promoting ‘Swachh Diwali - Shubh Diwali’ campaign under Eco-Vizag programme from November 8.
“Since Deepavali is associated with four main main components of environment such as air, noise, solid and water, we are working in a holistic manner with a dedicated team to address each pollutant separately,” Mr. Varma said.
The Visakhapatnam district eye hospital authorities suggested that the people should wear eye protective gears like goggles while lighting crackers during the festival. They can contact the 108 for ambulance in which their department would keep a special team during this festival.
Published - November 11, 2023 11:39 pm IST
