Deepavali, the victory of good over evil is celebrated by bursting crackers well past midnight. All our festival seasons coincide with an increase in air, water and sound pollution levels. Over the years, loud speakers and fire-crackers have become a part of our life, whether it is a marriage reception or any festive occasion. Noise levels have been a matter of concern as they are harmful to health and welfare of all.
Intensity of Noise
Noise intensity is measured in decibel units. The decibel scale is logarithmic; each 10-decibel increase represents a tenfold increase in noise intensity. Human perception of loudness also conforms to a logarithmic scale; a 10-decibel increase is perceived as roughly a doubling of loudness. Thus, 30 decibels is 10 times more intense than 20 decibels and sounds twice as loud; 40 decibels is 100 times more intense than 20 and sounds 4 times as loud; 80 decibels is 1 million times more intense than 20 and sounds 64 times as loud. Distance diminishes the effective decibel level reaching the ear.Subjected to 45 decibels of noise, an average person cannot sleep. At 120 decibels the ear registers pain, but hearing damage begins at a much lower level, about 85 decibels. The duration of the exposure is also important. Apart from hearing loss, noise can cause lack of sleep, irritability, heartburn, indigestion, ulcers, high blood pressure, and possibly heart disease. Prolonged or frequent exposure to noise tends to make the physiological disturbances chronic. In addition, noise-induced stress creates severe tension in daily living and contributes to mental illness.
Controlling Noise Pollution
Keeping in view the increasing trend in noise levels, Ministry has issued various regulations from time to time to control noise pollution in ambient air, at source and at manufacturing stage. To control community noise, Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 were issued in February, 2000, which makes it mandatory for local authorities to control noise levels in their respective areas. In a Petition regarding noise pollution – implementation of laws for restricting use of loudspeakers and high volume producing sound system, the Supreme Court in its judgement of July, 2005 has given detailed directions regarding implementation of laws for controlling noise. Subsequently, referring to the amendment of October, 2002 issued by the Ministry in respect of notification of February, 2000 permitting the use of loudspeaker or public address system during the night hours between 10.00 P.M. to 12.00 midnight on or during any cultural or religious festive occasions of a limited duration not exceeding 15 days in all during a calendar year, the Supreme Court had further observed that a limited power of exemption from operations of noise rules granted by the Central Government in exercise of its statutory power cannot be held unreasonable.In pursuance of these judgements and to collect bench mark data, all the regulatory agencies of the State Government/ Union Territories have been advised to comply with stipulated norms and to draw an Action Plan for ensuring the compliance of the directions. The concerned agencies have also been advised to strengthen/establish environmental cells at the State and district levels to check noise pollution and also to undertake survey in major cities specially before and after the festivals to ensure compliance. Intensive campaigns were also launched in print and electronic media about deleterious effects of noise pollution. For creating awareness, most of the State Governments have sent their monitoring reports of survey undertaken before and on Diwali day and the reports reveal that there has been a reasonable success in arresting menace of noise pollution. The conflict between competing interests in society - safety, health, and calm on the one hand, and tradition on the other hand, has evolved over time, and the health effects are receiving greater attention. There has been a concerted effort over the past few years to reduce noise pollution by opting for light based fireworks and at the same time maintain memorable traditions.