Valasaravakkam zone produced the most firecracker waste in Chennai after Deepavali, and police registered 148 cases for bursting outside the two permitted hours.
Valasaravakkam again. Zone 11 topped the city’s firecracker waste count for a second Deepavali running, with 69.94 tonnes cleared by 3 pm on Monday 9 November, the Greater Chennai Corporation said. That is about one tonne in every six collected across Chennai.
All 15 zones together gave up 406.26 tonnes between 7 and 9 November. Most of it, 256.34 tonnes, came in on Monday, after 145.87 tonnes on Deepavali Sunday. Going by past trends, workers expected the final count to climb to about 600 tonnes.
| Zone | 2026 (tonnes, 7-9 Nov) | 2025 (tonnes, 19-21 Oct) |
|---|---|---|
| 11 Valasaravakkam | 69.94 | 24.08 |
| 9 Teynampet | 41.31 | 19.84 |
| 1 Tiruvottiyur | 39.79 | 17.33 |
| 10 Kodambakkam | 38.28 | 20.45 |
| 7 Ambattur | 6.67 | Not given |
| All 15 zones | 406.26 | 225.87 |
Source: Greater Chennai Corporation figures for 2026 (to 3 pm, 9 November) and 2025. Other zones were not broken out.
Ambattur was lowest at 6.67 tonnes. Rain over the weekend slowed the crews down.
Sorting started on the street. Burnt cracker shells, wrapping paper and cardboard go to the 50-tonne-a-day incinerator at Kodungaiyur, while unburnt and half-burnt crackers, which still carry sulphur and gunpowder, are treated as hazardous waste and trucked to a facility at Gummidipoondi. The Corporation put about 19,275 morning-shift sanitation workers on the job, plus 600 extra staff and 350 tipper lorries, earthmovers and Bobcat machines, on top of its regular fleet. The Commissioner said the waste was being split into burnt and unburnt piles before it left each zone. “Rain has made removal harder because the waste has stuck to the roads,” Commissioner G S Sameeran said.
Most police cases were for bursting after hours
Greater Chennai Police registered 237 cases on Deepavali day. Of these, 148 were for bursting crackers beyond the permitted time and 79 for excessive noise. Ten more were for selling crackers without a licence.
The State government’s announcement of 4 November allowed bursting only from 6 am to 7 am and from 7 pm to 8 pm, in line with Supreme Court orders, and barred crackers near silence zones such as hospitals, schools, courts and places of worship. Commissioner A Amalraj had directed inspectors at every police station to watch their limits through the day.
How we worked this out
Zone and daily tonnages are the Greater Chennai Corporation’s figures as of 3 pm on 9 November 2026; the Corporation gave figures for five zones only. The 2025 column is the Corporation’s count for 19 to 21 October 2025, a slightly different three-day window. The share for Valasaravakkam divides 69.94 by 406.26. Police figures are from the Greater Chennai Police release and cover the city police limits only, not Tambaram or Avadi.
For Context
The 2026 count has already passed last year’s. The Corporation collected 225.87 tonnes over 19 to 21 October 2025, with Valasaravakkam on top then too at 24.08 tonnes and Anna Nagar lowest at 7.18 tonnes. In 2024 it reported 406 tonnes of firecracker waste removed and destroyed after Deepavali.
Checked against official sources on 11 November 2026.
Sources
- Greater Chennai Corporation, firecracker waste collection figures and statement of Commissioner G S Sameeran, 9 November 2026
- Greater Chennai Police, release on Deepavali firecracker violation cases, 10 November 2026
- Government of Tamil Nadu, announcement on Deepavali firecracker timings, 4 November 2026
- Greater Chennai Corporation, firecracker waste collection figures, 21 October 2025
