Imphal: Holi celebrations in Manipur began on Friday amid a hot debate over the duration of the festival.

For a long time, Manipur has celebrated the festival for five days and a section of the people here have suggested that a five-day celebration is too long and should be truncated.

The highlights of the festival include asking for donations by the children, who go from one house to another, applying colours on one another and dancing by young boys and girls in the night in front of their parents, locally known as thabal chongba. The festival is locally known as yaoshang.

Over the years the celebration has turned into a sporting extravaganza with every locality in the valley, especially where the Meiteis have settled, organising sporting events.

The debate over the duration of the festival was triggered by a post in social media by chief minister N. Biren Singh, who sought opinions over the reduction of the festival days to two.

Reactions to the post varied widely, with some fully supporting the idea while others argued that the festival's status quo should be maintained.

Though the number of holidays for holi in government departments was only two, attendance was almost nil during the five days of celebration.

The debate was extended from social media to public forums, with several organisations organising deliberations on the merit and demerit of the lengthy programmes on public forum.

Those who were against the five-day duration of the festival, argued that long celebrations were a sheer waste of energy, time and money.

Some localities have even announced already that they would celebrate the festival for only two days.

The first day of the festival was marked by torch-lit rallies by young boys and girls here, which inaugurated their respective sporting events.

The events are being organised by various local clubs.

Those citizens, who are participating in the debate over the duration of the festival have strongly recommended that the festival should be observed as a "sports week" by the government to groom and promote talented sportspersons.

A social anthropologist of Manipur University, M.C. Arun, was of the opinion that as festivals have their own natural course, no one can change the course of any festival.

Stating that the festival is celebrated by Hindus and India being a secular state, the academician said a chief minister should not make comments on the merits and demerits of a festival, which is related to religion.