Sunday, Dec 01, 2002
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By Anand Parthasarathy
The amendments were effected by a notification of the Ministry of Environment and Forests dated October 11 this year, by inserting a new sub-rule no. 3 in Rule 5 of the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules of 2000. However, the amendment received no publicity and seems to have been displayed on the website of the Ministry only after November 20. The original rule stated that "...Loudspeakers shall not be used at night between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. except in closed premises...'' There was no scope for any authority to grant exemptions from this rule. However, the new insertion states: "...The State Government may, subject to terms and conditions as are necessary to reduce noise pollution, permit use of loudspeakers or public address systems during night hours (between 10 p.m. and midnight) on or during any cultural or religious occasion of a limited duration not exceeding 15 days in all during a calendar year''. In recent years, the High Courts have been moved on numerous occasions by harassed citizens who found it difficult to sleep during festivals like Navarathri, Durga Puja and Deepavali, because of the night-long bursting of firecrackers or `dandiya'-type music programmes backed by public address systems. Strictures passed by the Supreme Court led many States this year — for the first time — to come down heavily on such violations of the noise rules. A quieter Depavali was reported from places such as Delhi, Hyderabad and Chennai. And the traditionally night-long "disco dandiyas" in Mumbai had to pack up by 11 p.m. However, the amendment will now come in handy for some State Governments or political outfits, which had, at best, been half-hearted about the night-time ban on loudspeakers. The Shiv Sena, in particular, had been vociferous in protesting against any curb on loudspeakers during the Ganesh Chathurti week and a "helpful" Advocate-General in Maharashtra had even suggested last year that a cloth pandal could be deemed to meet the requirement of "closed premises" for night-time programmes. Such States that found the noise curbs irksome will now have no difficulty issuing special permits on festive occasions under the amended rules — which in essence will take the country's gradually improving noise pollution scenario back to square one. P.B. Sahasranamam, a Kerala-based advocate who specialises in environmental law and has steered a number of public interest cases in the State and in the Supreme Court, has used his enviro-legal website (http://personal.vsnl.com/sahasram) to bring this amendment to public attention. He told The Hindu that " the original time-limit for loudspeakers at night was incorporated, recognising the right of the people to sleep peacefully. The insertion of the new rule negates the very purpose of the legislation." He said the relaxation was done "without calling for any public opinion or conducting any studies... it will give unbridled power to the States which some are likely to abuse''.
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