Rampant noise norm violation in Kolkata on Diwali night

On Diwali afternoon, West Bengal environment minister Manas Bhuniya had said the state pollution control board would be able to contain noise violations.

However, rampant noise violations took place in several pockets in the city. The minister had to ask West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) officials to get the violators arrested after receiving complaints that even hospitals were not spared.

The Telegraph criss-crossed the city from 8pm to 2am between Monday and Tuesday with a team from the green platform, Sabuj Mancha, on the basis of whose petition Calcutta High Court had recently passed an order on fireworks. What the team came across:

Hospitals

Around 9pm on Monday, relentless noise of firecrackers being burst could be heard around Ramkrishna Mission Seva Pratisthan near Sarat Bose Road and the Hazra Road crossing.

The noise levels, measured with the help of devices by the Sabuj Mancha monitoring team, ruled consistently above 100 decibels — far higher than the permissible 50 decibels (in hospitals) and 55 decibels (in residential areas) till 10pm.

The situation was no different at Kolkata Police Hospital at Bhowanipore and Vidyasagar State General Hospital at Behala. The police personnel posted on these hospital premises expressed helplessness.

“We are posted within the hospital and cannot do anything outside,” was the standard reply as the shells burst around.

“All fireworks with such high noise levels are illegal in the state and they cannot be burst at any point of time,” a member of the team pointed out.

No time-limit

Fireworks (green) can be used only between 8pm and 10 pm. But on the ground, few appeared to care. Close to midnight, fireworks were used in abundance throughout James Long Sarani and several places in Behala.

“Around midnight, we found that on the Sanjib Palli ground on BN Roy Road, off Behala Chowrasta, around 50 people were bursting bombs, shells and rockets. We complained to the WBPCB and the police. The local police called us a few times but could locate the place only once the people left,” said a Sabuj Mancha member.

High-rises

Awareness drives among residents of the high-rises seemed to have fallen on deaf ears in several places. Till 2.30am, fireworks could be seen from the well-lit roof of a multi-storied building on Ballygunge Circular Road.

Earlier, similar scenes were seen at Kasba, Dhakuria and Behala.

Microphones

Around 10.20pm, several clubs on Gopal Nagar Road as well as those beside Durgapur Bridge were blaring music at full volume without the mandatory sound limiters as the police stood in silence. The experience was similar in Lake Town and Baguiati areas.

The norm is no microphone can be used beyond 10pm unless an emergency announcement has to be done. The WBPCB received 19 complaints about microphones and the Sabuj Mancha around 16.

Official response

“Next year, I will sit with the WBPCB, municipalities, police and also environmentalists to chalk out a prescription for better implementation of noise norms,” Bhuniya said.