While wishing the people of Coimbatore a ‘Happy Pongal’, District Collector Archana Patnaik has called for pollution-free Pongal celebrations.

In a release, the Collector has said that people from rural areas usually burn articles like old clothes, broomsticks, agriculture wastes and blankets to mark the arrival of new things.

“People from the city are also indulging in burning articles like tyre, rubber and plastic, which largely pollute the environment,” she said.

She has further said that the smoke from such fire mixes with air and pollutes the air and disturbs road traffic as smog. “The High Court has ruled against burning such articles and also people involving in such incidents are punishable under the Law,” she said.