Culture2 min
Shillong Firecracker Curbs Should Cover Every Festival, Letter Argues
A letter to The Shillong Times says Diwali firecracker limits and Durga Puja arrangements should face the same rules as every other public celebration in Meghalaya.
A letter to the editor in The Shillong Times is pushing back on a call by the Khasi Students' Union for stricter firecracker enforcement during Diwali. The writer accepts the limits in principle. The core demand is simpler: apply the same rules to everyone, whatever the festival.
The letter accepts the proposed window for permitted firecrackers, 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM, and supports restricting use to crackers that meet prescribed noise and environmental standards. Those standards include limits of 125 dB(AI) or 145 dB(C) peak measured at four metres. No bursting should happen after 10:00 PM. The writer says there is no objection to these reasonable restrictions.
The writer's main complaint is about consistency. If the 8 PM to 10 PM rule is applied, it should cover New Year parties and every other religious, cultural or social event as well. The letter argues that the law cannot carry one standard for one community and a looser one for another.
The letter also questions why temporary gates, pandals and road setups for Durga Puja draw so much objection. Traffic congestion in Shillong is a year-round problem, the writer says, not a festival-season one. Not every committee builds structures that block roads, so each case should be judged on its merits. The same scrutiny, the letter adds, should apply to political programmes, commercial events and other gatherings.
The writer warns that repeated focus on festivals mainly celebrated by Hindus can leave that community feeling singled out, whether or not that is intended. In a state where peaceful coexistence is a shared priority, the letter says, that perception carries real costs. It points to India's secular framework and to every community's right to celebrate within the law.
The letter stops short of rejecting the KSU's concerns. It acknowledges that the union, like any other group, can raise genuine public issues. Its ask is that those concerns lead to equal treatment, not an impression of discrimination. For residents planning Diwali and the rest of the festival calendar, the message is that one clear rulebook, applied evenly, is what the writer wants to see. Read the full letter in The Shillong Times.
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