The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has banned rockets and other aerial firecrackers across Mumbai until November 25 after firecrackers triggered 137 of the 142 calls received by the Mumbai Fire Brigade on Diwali night, putting emergency services under severe pressure and injuring two women.
The restriction came into force on November 9 and applies to public and private premises within BMC limits, including residential buildings, terraces, rooftops, balconies, courtyards, parking areas and slum settlements. Police, BMC ward officials and the fire brigade have been directed to enforce the order.
The ban specifically covers rockets and similar sky-flying fireworks. Other firecrackers remain subject to existing laws and court directions. The move followed several major fires across the city, including a blaze at Haji Kasam Chawl on Dr Maheshwari Road in Dongri that took firefighters about nine hours to extinguish.
Two other major fires tested the city’s emergency response on Diwali night. A garage fire on Military Road in Marol took around five hours to bring under control, while a blaze at Skyline Vida, a 10-storey commercial building near Jolly Gymkhana in Vidyavihar, spread from the seventh to the 10th floor and took six hours to extinguish. No injuries were reported in these three fires in the initial account, although two women were injured in separate firecracker-related incidents across Mumbai.
The fire brigade’s workload has risen during the Diwali period, according to figures reported by Mid-Day. Mumbai recorded 262 total fire calls and 80 firecracker-related incidents during Diwali in 2024. The corresponding figures rose to 289 and 113 in 2025. On November 8, 2026, the city recorded 142 total fire calls, of which 137 were linked to firecrackers.
Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde appealed to residents to celebrate responsibly and avoid bursting crackers near residential buildings and on footpaths. A senior police official said personnel were deployed across the city and that people were allowed to burst crackers inside building compounds during a two-hour window after 10 pm, while public-space violations were otherwise addressed through warnings and dispersal.
The reported enforcement difficulties have raised questions about how restrictions can be implemented in densely populated neighbourhoods. Police officials told Mid-Day that they could not register first information reports against people found bursting crackers in public spaces and instead warned them. Police sources also alleged that groups, sometimes accompanied by local political leaders, confronted personnel and discouraged action.
Former Mumbai Fire Brigade chief fire officer Dr Prabhat S Rahangdale said housing societies should check whether sprinklers, fire pumps and extinguishers are operational before festivities. He also warned that between 10 and 20 fires can occur simultaneously during such periods, stretching fire brigade resources.
In neighbouring Thane, a fire at the 17-storey Carlyle Building in Raheja Gardens spread from the seventh to the 14th floor. Around 40 to 50 residents were rescued after being affected by heavy smoke, including, according to the report, a senior citizen dependent on BiPAP oxygen support. The BMC order remains applicable within Mumbai’s civic limits until November 25.
