Mumbai bans rockets and aerial firecrackers until November 25 after 137 of 142 fire calls on Diwali day traced to crackers

Mumbai’s civic disaster authority has banned rockets and other aerial firecrackers across the city until 11:59 pm on November 25, a day after Diwali fires that kept the fire brigade busy through the night and into Monday morning.

The order was issued on Monday, November 9, by the Urban Disaster Management Authority of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and signed by Prajakta Verma-Lavangare. It took effect immediately. It describes an “immediate, citywide ban on the use of sky rockets and all high-flying aerial firecrackers” and gives as its reason a “dramatic rise in fire mishaps over the past two days.”

What the order covers

The ban applies on public and private premises within BMC limits, including residential buildings, terraces, balconies, courtyards, parking areas and slum settlements. Other firecrackers are not covered by this order and stay under existing laws, directions and court orders. Zonal deputy commissioners of police, divisional assistant commissioners of the BMC and the Mumbai Fire Brigade have been told to enforce it, and the BMC’s public relations officer has been asked to publicise it.

The order cites the city’s density: tightly packed buildings, high-rises and narrow roads, where burning debris from a rocket can land on a neighbouring roof, balcony or open window. It is issued under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. Under Section 51 of the Act, refusing to comply without reasonable cause can bring a fine, up to six months in jail, or both, and up to a year if the refusal causes or threatens loss of life.

The night that led to it

The Mumbai Fire Brigade received 142 fire calls on November 8, the day of Laxmi Pujan. Of these, 137, or about 96 per cent, were blamed on firecrackers. Officials put the number of firecracker-related incidents at about 200 of 282 fire incidents over the four days from November 6 to 9.

Three fires were serious. A garage fire in Haji Kasam Chawl on Dr Maheshwari Road in Dongri began at about 10 pm and was brought under control at 7:23 am on Monday, after nine hours, and was upgraded from Level I to Level II. A garage fire on Marol Military Road in Andheri, near a school, started at 10:51 pm and was controlled at 3:50 am. A fire at Skyline Vida, a 10-storey commercial building near Jolly Gymkhana in Vidyavihar, began shortly before midnight and was put out at 5:55 am. Fire officials suspected rockets and aerial crackers in each case. No casualties were reported from the three fires, though two firemen were injured.

Reactions

Mayor Ritu Tawde put out a video appeal. “Let us celebrate responsibly and ensure that our festivities do not come at the cost of someone else’s safety,” she said. She asked residents not to burst crackers near residential buildings or on footpaths.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray said police and the administration “must certainly take official action in such cases. An explanation is needed.”

Residents of the Dongri chawl alleged that firefighters arrived late and lacked equipment. Chief Fire Officer Ravindra Ambulgekar denied this. Civic authorities could not confirm an allegation that the Dongri structure was illegal.

How we got here

The Bombay High Court had already barred bursting crackers on public streets, lanes and footpaths for every festival, as we reported on October 15. That order is about where crackers are burst, not their sale. The BMC’s order now adds a city-wide limit on rockets specifically, for the next 16 days.

Will it be enforced

Enforcement is the test. Rockets were still being fired over Mumbai on Monday night, hours after the order was announced. Residents in high-rises and slum clusters, the places where stray debris does most harm, are the ones the order is written for. Thane district has its own ban on similar items until January 8, 2027, so the rule changes at the city boundary.

The ban lasts until 11:59 pm on November 25. The BMC has not said whether it will be extended.