Noise pollution has emerged as a significant public health hazard, but is given the silent treatment by administrators. The adverse health effects of noise are well-documented, yet few victims of hypertension or chronic depression will make the connection between their ailment and living in a high-decibel zone. As a result, citizen engagement in anti-noise efforts is low.
Mumbai was the noisiest city in India in 2016, but it is the denizens of Delhi who suffer most from noise pollution, paradoxically termed a “silent killer”. The World Hearing Index created in 2017 on the basis of WHO data and research studies, found that Delhi suffers the highest average noise-related hearing loss worldwide, equivalent to someone 20 years older. In other words, you may be 40, but you will have the hearing of a 60-year-old.
This, despite the Noise Rules formulated in 2010 (and updated in 2017) by the Union Environment ministry. The Supreme Court, the High Courts and the National Green Tribunal have all held that noise pollution affects the Right to Life, because it is a risk factor in a laundry list of diseases including Type 2 diabetes, strokes, heart attacks, obesity and migraines, not to mention a whole range of psychological disturbances. Urban traffic is loud enough to cause chronic hearing damage in just eight hours of exposure.
Safety standards exist. The statutes exist. But these rules are more honoured in the breach than in the observance. Only if a group of citizens complains repeatedly will the police take action against loudspeakers (which are routinely used without mandatory written permission, in violation of the rules). Only if a citizen approaches the courts will the administration take cognizance of a chronic source of noise pollution. Even then, action is rarely taken, in blatant contempt of court.
The Indian Railways, deaf to the Noise Pollution Rules, is a major offender in this respect. Ear-splitting horns, deafening locomotives, ancient railtracks emitting high-pitched squeals and earth-shaking vibrations from overloaded rakes rip through residential areas in cities on a daily basis, because no effort has been made to install sound barriers, as Metro rail networks have done. Needless to say, the Indian Railways has not even bothered to lower the intensity of its horns to conform to safety standards.
As for road transport, noise barriers are installed on highways and arterial roads when citizens complain, but not otherwise. A noise-mapping study by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) in Mumbai found that the railways and road transport, in that order, were the topmost contributors to noise in the metropolis.
For the unfortunates living in proximity to an airport, the sound of aircraft landing and taking off is an additional burden, although safety standards were instituted in 2018. The limits are understandably higher than those for residential areas and defence aircrafts are naturally exempted.
NEERI has developed a Noise App, the "Noise Tracker", for smartphones. Armed with this or one of several similar apps, the police can easily measure whether the 55-decibel (44 dB at night) safety limit is being violated. In Delhi, the police is required to take action within 30 minutes of a noise complaint, but there is a manifest reluctance on their part to curb community noise, whether it is from places of worship, weddings, parties, fireworks, construction work or public events.
Often, citizens do not bother to complain, either because of a lack of awarness of the rules or fear of social conflict, or the lackadaisical approach of the police. However, citizen engagement has proved effective in tackling noise pollution, notably in Mumbai. Mobilized by NGOs, citizens have managed to reduce noise levels from public processions and fireworks. Through PILs or campaigns, they have also ensured the installation of sound barriers.
Children are particularly vulnerable to noise pollution, because it negatively impacts their physical and mental development. That it impairs concentration and disrupts sleep is a given, but it can also lead to learning disabilities and modify behaviour. Cognitive development, comprehension and acquisition of speech and language are affected, while physical effects include elevated blood pressure.
From this perspective, the awareness campaigns on noise pollution in schools, notably in Maharashtra and Delhi, are welcome. At the same time, parents, too, must be made aware of safety standards and legal safeguards against noise pollution.
Citizens can mobilise effectively against community noise in residential areas, but the two major sources of noise pollution in cities – roads and railways – cannot be checked unless government agencies take the issue seriously. The manifest reluctance of the courts to impose penalties on erring government servants compounds the problem. Unlike air pollution, from which a spell of rain or a strong breeze offers a respite, noise pollution from road and rail traffic is relentless – and deadly.
The writer is a senior journalist with 35 years of experience in working with major newspapers and magazines. She is now an independent writer and author.
