Chennai: People in Chennai and other parts of Tamilnadu celebrated Bhogi this morning by lighting a bonfire which marks the beginning of the four-day Pongal festival.

Smoke surrounded various parts of the city and suburbs as people burnt card boards, old and unwanted things. Due to environmental concerns, the Tamilmadu government has asked the public not to burn plastics and tyres.

Bhogi is celebrated a day ahead of the harvest festival (Pongal), where old and unwanted articles of the past year are burnt in a symbolic gesture to usher in the new aspects of life.

Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials distributed pamphlets to people living near the Chennai airport requesting them not to burn Bhogi bonfires as smoke would cause flight delays due to poor visibility.