BackGovt working on new noise pollution standards
Work on developing the new standards is expected to be completed in around three months
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New Delhi: After taking measures to tackle air and water pollution across India, the environment ministry has now set its eyes on creating new standards for noise pollution.
Led by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), India’s apex pollution-controlling body, the work for developing new noise pollution standards has already started and is expected to be completed in around three months.
CPCB has recently put online a new draft protocol for ambient-level noise monitoring and is waiting for feedback from experts.
“A comprehensive noise pollution monitoring system is being developed and in all probability it should be ready within next three-four months. The standards will cover all noise sources—loudspeakers, vehicles (horns), or others. We are also looking at ways to control noise pollution in metro cities across India," an environment ministry official said on condition of anonymity.
The new standards will also focus on noise at different locations (industrial or residential) at different times (day or night) and suggest control measures.
The official admitted that noise pollution had thus far not been a priority.
“In the first year (this government was in office), we took a series of steps to control air and water pollution. A focus on them will continue, but noise pollution will also be an important component now. Noise pollution is also very dangerous for human health," the ministry official added.
He explained that this won’t need an entirely fresh start because some work has already been done.
In March 2011, the Union government set up the National Ambient Noise Monitoring Network (NANMN) through CPCB and the state pollution control boards (SPCBs) to monitor noise on a 24x7 basis in India’s seven largest cities. Official data, generated so far and analysed by CPCB, shows a “fluctuating trend in noise levels in metro cities".
Under NANMN, 70 stations exist in seven cities—10 each in Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Lucknow and Mumbai (including Navi Mumbai). The noise monitoring stations are operated by the SPCBs concerned.
The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000, were last amended in January 2010 to reduce noise levels at night and from public address systems.
Activists said implementation holds the key.
“It’s good that we are tightening the noise pollution standards, but what we actually need is a clear implementation strategy to control it. There has been very limited action till now to control noise pollution except for a targeted action against loudspeakers. We need to have a clear strategy to reduce noise in cities. We need to plan more noise barriers in the city and work to reduce overall noise level in our cities," said Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy, at Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment, an environmental activist organization.
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