Hyderabad: At least 50 people have sustained eye injuries during Diwali celebrations in the city and the outskirts.
Doctors at the government-run Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital said 50 people, mostly teenagers, had been brought to the hospital since last night amid the Diwali celebrations across Hyderabad.
While 45 of them were sent home after treatment, five persons with critical injuries remained in the hospital and they were operated upon.
Injured queued up at the hospital located in Mehdipatnam. The majority of them were aged between 15 and 17 years.
While some sustained injuries while bursting firecrackers, others were hit by the crackers lit close to them.
Hyderabad Police had banned bursting sound emitting firecrackers on public roads and public places except between 8 p.m. to 10. p.m. However, the fireworks in many places continued till the early hours of Monday.
Hyderabad Police Commissioner Sandeep Shandiliya had issued a notification banning the bursting of crackers on public roads and public places. According to the notification, the orders will remain in force from November 12 to November 15.
Clash at Musheerabad over firecrackers
Two groups clashed on Sunday, November 12, at Musheerabad over the bursting of crackers in a residential area.
Abdul Arafath, 19, a student and resident of Bholakpur, Musheerabad was at his house when a few children in the neighbourhood were bursting firecrackers and throwing them in front of his house, to which he objected. Following this, his neighbours, Lallu and his relatives Shiva, Ramesh, Sunil, Rajes and Ganesh abused him and later pelted stones at his house and attacked him with sticks.
At the same time, Arafath’s friends Abdul Javeed, Burhan Uddin, Waseem Uddin, his father Abdul Gaffar, Azharuddin, and Wajeed Ali came to his rescue and attempted to defend him. However, they too were beaten up.
In this incident, several received bleeding injuries and were rushed to Gandhi Hospital. This incident created tension in the area and police forces were pressed into service.
The police have registered a rioting case against Lallu and his kin, while Aarafath and others were also booked for physical assault. Further investigation is underway.
Follow on Twitter | Posted by Neha Khan | 
