BJP State president K. Annamalai on Saturday urged the Tamil Nadu government to expedite approvals for retail outlets selling firecrackers.
Alleging that there was a huge delay in according permission for the outlets, with only one week left for Deepavali, he said this was adversely affecting the livelihood of thousands of retailers and the firecracker industry.
Earlier, outlets had to obtain permission from three different authorities. This has now been changed to five, Mr. Annamalai said, and attributed this as a key reason for the delay.
Such delays would lead to irregularities, he added.