West Bengal has announced a fresh set of firecracker regulations ahead of Kali Puja and Chhath Puja, restricting bursting hours, capping sound levels, and mandating the use of green crackers only. The guidelines were unveiled at a press conference on Thursday, 29 October 2026 at the state secretariat Nabanna in Kolkata, marking one of the stricter festive-season frameworks the state has issued in recent years.

Who Announced the Rules

West Bengal Director General of Police (DGP) Siddh Nath Gupta and state Home Secretary Sanghamitra Ghosh jointly presented the new measures. The announcement underscores a coordinated push between the state's law enforcement and administrative arms to enforce compliance during the festive window.

Key Restrictions and Permitted Hours

Under the new norms, only environmentally friendly green crackers will be permitted during both festivals. Sound levels have been capped at 125 decibels for loud crackers and 90 decibels for standard varieties. Bursting will be allowed between 8 pm and 10 pm on Kali Puja night, while Chhath Puja celebrants may use crackers between 6 am and 8 am.

A complete ban has been imposed on bursting firecrackers within 100 metres of hospitals and old age homes. Residents of multi-storeyed buildings have been specifically advised to monitor smoke levels. Flying paper lanterns will require a prior licence from the Fire Department — a provision targeting a practice that has caused fire incidents in past years.

Market Oversight and Enforcement

The state administration has directed that firecracker markets be set up away from residential localities, with strict surveillance to be maintained. In a sign that enforcement is already under way, the Kolkata Police on Thursday reported the recovery of 110 kg of banned firecrackers from the market, with action initiated against those responsible.

DGP Gupta stated that legal punitive action will follow any violation of the rules. A dedicated helpline has been made available for citizens to report breaches — a measure aimed at crowd-sourcing compliance monitoring across a city of over 14 million people.

Public Appeal and Environmental Context

Home Secretary Ghosh appealed to residents to celebrate responsibly, stressing that festivities should not inconvenience or endanger others. This comes amid persistent concerns over air quality in Kolkata during the October–November festive period, when firecracker pollution has historically spiked particulate matter levels well beyond safe limits. The Supreme Court has in previous years ordered restrictions on crackers across Indian cities on similar grounds, lending legal weight to state-level crackdowns.

Notably, these rules mirror the broad framework adopted in Delhi and several other states, where green-cracker mandates have become standard festive-season policy since around 2019. Whether enforcement matches the announcement — a gap that has dogged past iterations — will determine the rules' actual impact on air quality this year.