Despite blanket ban, acid available at local stores
Kajal, a 16-year-old girl, goes to a grocery shop in Ghumar Mandi to get a bottle of acid and she gets it easily for just Rs 80. The only instruction given to her by the shopkeeper was to take it secretly, wrapped in a black polythene bag and not show it to anyone. A domestic helper, Kajal, bought the acid for cleaning toilets and kitchen sinks at the house she works at.
This is not an isolated case. Bottles of acid are sold over the counter in an illegal manner to ’reliable’ customers at karyana shops, hardware and sanitary shops. Despite the Supreme Court’s (SC) directions, acid is sold without getting details of the buyer. In a judgment in 2013, the SC banned the sale of acid across the country.
Another homemaker in the Civil Lines said she bought acid from a grocery store. “But since it was banned and the shopkeepers are scared to sell it, they charge exorbitantly for a bottle. Fifteen days ago, I got two bottles for Rs 220. And I paid it because I needed the acid for cleaning purposes,” said the homemaker.
Acid is being sold across the city, including in the industrial area and focal points. The worst part is that it sold without keeping any record of the buyer.
Though the sale and purchase of acid was banned in 2013, 202 cases of acid attacks were reported in 2022, and most of the victims were females.
According to rules, there are few conditions for selling acid: The sellers must have a license for selling the acid. The sellers must be registered under the Poisons Act of 1919. The seller must keep a record of their stock and individual sales and the sellers need to obtain the buyers’ ID proof and know the reason of purchasing.
Rules for selling acid
- Seller must have a licence for selling the acid
- Must be registered under the Poisons Act, 1919
- Must keep a record of their stock and sales
- Must keep record of the buyers’ ID proof and reason of purchase
