Archive · 6 Aug 2026
Meghalaya District Bans Roadside Cooking and Littering to Protect Environment
A district in Meghalaya, India made a new rule.
People can no longer cook food on the side of roads or at scenic viewpoints.
They also cannot throw trash into forests, rivers, or drains.
These places are cleaned up to keep nature safe and beautiful.
Many tourists visit this area every year, so lots of litter was piling up.
Cooking with firewood, charcoal, or gas caused mess, traffic jams, and sometimes fire danger.
The leaders who made the rule are called the district administration.
They asked tourists, residents, and tour operators to help follow the new rule.
Anyone who breaks the rule could face legal trouble.
The goal is to protect nature and keep Meghalaya known as a clean eco-tourism destination.
East Khasi Hills district administration banned roadside cooking and indiscriminate waste dumping at tourist destinations and public places.
District Magistrate Abhilash Baranwal issued the order under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, with immediate effect.
Officials cited sanitation problems, traffic congestion, and fire hazards from roadside cooking using firewood, charcoal, and LPG cylinders.
A complete ban covers littering and dumping solid or liquid waste in forests, rivers, streams, drains, and roadside areas.
Violators face legal action under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023; the ex parte order remains in force until further directions.
- Who
- The East Khasi Hills district administration in Meghalaya, led by District Magistrate Abhilash Baranwal.
- What
- Prohibited roadside cooking and indiscriminate dumping of waste at tourist destinations, viewpoints, and other public places.
- When
- Issued on Wednesday with immediate effect; the ex parte order remains in force until further directions.
- Where
- East Khasi Hills district, Meghalaya, India, particularly the Shillong-Mawkdok-Sohra tourist corridor.
- Why
- To curb littering and environmental degradation, sanitation problems, traffic congestion, and fire hazards, and to preserve Meghalaya's image as a clean eco-tourism destination.
- District
- East Khasi Hills, Meghalaya, India
- Ordering authority
- District Magistrate Abhilash Baranwal
- Legal basis
- Section 163, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023
- Penalty provision
- Section 223, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023
- Effective from
- Immediately (ex parte order, until further directions)
- Banned activities
- Roadside cooking, littering, dumping of solid or liquid waste
- Areas covered
- Tourist destinations, viewpoints, roadsides, forests, rivers, streams, drains
- Key focus corridor
- Shillong-Mawkdok-Sohra tourist corridor