Bombay High court made the observation while dictating a judgement on a batch of public interest litigations on violation of noise pollution rules and encroachment by pandals on roads during religious festivals. Bombay High court made the observation while dictating a judgement on a batch of public interest litigations on violation of noise pollution rules and encroachment by pandals on roads during religious festivals.

The Bombay High Court on Friday hinted at directing the Maharashtra government to consider ‘noise mapping’ all over the state so as to ensure that the decibel levels are below the prescribed limits.

A noise map is a graphic representation of the sound-level distribution existing in a given region, for a defined period.

A division bench of the high court headed by Justice Abhay Oka made the observation while dictating a judgement on a batch of public interest litigations on violation of noise pollution rules and encroachment by pandals on roads during religious festivals.

The court also took a serious note of the government’s stand to seek two months more time to instal noise meters during religious festival celebrations by various sarvajanik mandals (community groups) in the state.

“Since 2014, interim orders have been passed (by the high court), yet meters are not made available…We are shocked to note that the approach of the state government is very casual,” the bench said in its order which was being dictated in the court for the third day in a row.

“The result of this inaction is that two important forthcoming festivals like Ganeshotsav and Dahi Handi would be held without installation of noise meters,” the bench observed.

At the last hearing, Government Pleader Abhinandan Vagyani had conceyed that the government had ordered 1,843 noise meters for effective implementation of Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000, and these would be available by August-end.

The petitions have been filed by Thane resident Mahesh Bedekar, Awaz Foundation, Santosh Pachalag and others. The court would continue the dictation of the judgement on August 16.

The bench had observed two days ago that the state government had failed to implement noise pollution rules in the state and violation of norms is more rampant during religious festivals.

It had also observed that the government did not follow in letter and spirit the orders passed by the high court in this regard earlier.

During the hearing, the HC had cited a Supreme Court judgement to state that freedom to practise religion does not extend to “any and every place”.

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