Kolkata Police commissioner Manoj Verma on Tuesday said special instructions had been given to officers to maintain vigil on highrise buildings and the outskirts, from where the maximum number of violation of the firecracker ban is usually reported on Diwali.

“Special instructions have been given for highrise buildings. Anyone who violates the law, strict action will be taken,” Verma said.

Several officers said the police often find it difficult to track violations from high-rises as firecrackers burst on the terraces, which are often inaccessible to the police.

“We are urging the residents of all high-rises to keep the terraces locked. We will post cops on the ground floor so they can rush to the terrace if there is any violation,” said the officer in charge of a police station in the north division.

Verma visited the Bazi Bazar at Shahid Minar on Tuesday.

“We have held multiple meetings with the stakeholders and manufacturers. Instructions have been given that only green crackers can be used. A lot of public awareness campaigns have been done,” Verma said.

“Today we inspected the Bazi Bazar. The firecrackers have a green mark on them that can be scanned to find out if they are certified,” he said.

Verma said various markets are under vigil, too.

According to the rule, only green crackers can be sold and burst. One can find out whether a firecracker is certified as a green cracker or not by scanning the QR code printed on the box.

Scanning the QR code should lead to a certificate issued by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI).

If no certificate is generated by scanning the QR code, chances are the crackers
are illegal.