AQI and lack of IQ

 

Today, all the talk is about AQI (Air Quality Index). One Chief Minister thinks it is temperature, which can be measured by anything, up to and including a measuring tape. Proposed solution – throw water on the tape and close down the tandoors. Government admits to high AQI but addresses the root cause by stating that there’s no correlation between high AQI and lung problems. Another person, heading the most powerful country in the world thinks the world needs more global warming because he happens to feel chilly sometimes. We live in such times. 

In all this din, the real din, i.e., noise pollution, seems to have escaped people’s attention. Noise pollution leads to serious health issues – hearing loss, Tinnitus, high blood pressure, heart disease, stress, anxiety, sleep disruption, etc.. It also impairs concentration, memory, and productivity in a big way. Children, pets and the elderly are particularly vulnerable. It also harms wildlife by disrupting communication and survival. Here’s a what people with Tinnitus live with: 

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/I1unX9SVpPE 

Many countries take noise pollution extremely seriously. So much so that in London, aircraft landings and take offs are severely restricted during certain hours just because of the noise exceeding ambient noise by a wide margin. Scarborough, England cancelled New Year’s fireworks on 1.1.2023 so that a walrus who had ambled into their coast would not be disturbed in its rest.

By contrast, we in India seem to thrive on noise, the more, the merrier. While in many countries, honking is almost a no-no and is considered rude and aggressive, in India, we honk for a variety of reasons. We honk not only for warning other drivers or pedestrians, we do it to express greeting and joy, to show impatience, to announce our presence, as a safety valve to deal with road rage, paranoia and frustration or simply because we are bored. Stand on any traffic intersection during most hours and a cacophony assaults you beyond endurance limits. Any festival, any cause for celebration is never complete without microphones and amplifiers blaring all over the place. 

In January 1998, a 13-year old girl was a victim of rape. Her cries for help went unheard because of blaring noise of music over loudspeaker in the neighbourhood. The same evening, she committed suicide. This shook the conscience of the nation and brought to the fore the pestilential nature of undue noise. It also led to a Public Interest Litigation case before the Supreme Court which delivered a landmark judgement in 2005. 

The Supreme Court held that the fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution, i.e., the right to life and liberty includes the right to freedom from noise pollution. This right cannot be violated by justification through right to freedom of speech and expression (Article 19) when the latter impinges upon a person’s fundamental right to life and liberty. 

The Supreme Court order (2005), Calcutta High Court order (2023), Noise pollution control rules and SOP by West Bengal Pollution Control Board boil down to these for West Bengal: 

·     Firecrackers are allowed only between 8 AM and 10 PM during Diwali, between 6 AM and 8 AM during Chhat Puja and between 11.55 PM and 12.30 AM during Christmas and New Year Eve. On any other occasion, prior permission is required, that too for two hours only. Noise of firecrackers cannot exceed 125 decibels at a distance of four metres.

·       Peripheral noise at the boundary of a public place ust not exceed 75 decibels and a residential place 60 decibels. 60 decibels is basically the sound level when two persons are talking normally.

·       No instrument or sound amplifier between 10 PM and 6 PM except in public emergencies. No horn in residential areas during the above period.

·   Microphones and amplifiers to be used only after permission from Police/ district authorities after fixing a ‘Sound Limiter’ with the amplifier system.

·       No Disc Jockey (DJ) set or high pitch sound box is to be used in the open.

These regulations have been in place for a while. However, their implementation is another thing. I stay in a complex of senior Police officers, serving and retired. The violation of the above norms is rampant even in this complex of law enforcers. 

Looks like, people can’t live without bursting firecrackers. Diwali celebrations start before the day of Diwali. 8 PM to 10 PM window doesn’t seem to have any meaning. People start bursting crackers before 8 PM and continue well beyond 10 PM. Some other complexes nearby have banned firecrackers. People from some of these complexes land up in the Police complex to burst crackers, presumably safe in immunity because of it being a Police complex. As to 125 decibel limit, the less said, the better. Even basic safety precautions are not taken. Firecrackers land in houses. A senior officer standing innocently on his own balcony nearly lost an eye as a “rocket bomb” just whizzed past it. 

There’s no concept of ‘Sound Limiter.’ The decibel level during New year Eve is to be heard to be believed – walls shake. I guess, the time limit of 10 PM applies only to other people. 

When I suggested complying with the norms, I was asked to “explain” – possibly the first instance of law violators asking law abiders to “explain” their conduct! Well, I’ve taken recourse to legal intervention and I guess I’m currently the most unpopular guy for miles around. 

I hope, people in India realise the serious hazard they themselves are facing due to the callous disregard of noise pollution. I developed Tinnitus after moving into this Police complex. There is no cure.