Noise pollution penalty now up to ₹1L

NEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has cleared hefty penalties for violation of noise pollution norms, proposed by the Central Pollution Control Board, which may go as high as ₹1 lakh.

In an order dated August 11, NGT chairperson Adarsh Kumar Goel also ordered the constitution of a monitoring committee headed by retired high court judge SP Garg to ensure compliance of noise pollution rules in the national Capital.

In a report submitted to the NGT on June 12, the CPCB had proposed penalties for various violations. Approving the fines, Goel said, “We are of the view that the compensation scale laid down by the CPCB for defaulters may be enforced throughout India. The CPCB may issue appropriate statutory orders for the purpose of being complied with in all States/uts.”

According to the CPCB report, a fine of ₹10,000 would be levied for misuse of loudspeakers and public address system, besides seizure of equipment. Noise pollution from diesel generators of over 1000 KVA capacity would attract a fine of ₹1 lakh and equipment will be sealed. Noise beyond permissible levels at construction sites would invite a penalty of ₹ 50,000 and seizure of equipment.

Permissible noise levels for residential areas is 55 decibels (db [A]) during the day and 45 DB(A) at night. The standards for industrial areas are 75 db (A) during the day and 70 db (A) at night. The standard noise limit for silence zones such as hospitals and educational institutions during day time is 50 db (A) and 40db (A) during the night.

The central board had also proposed heavy penalties for bursting firecrackers that cause sound beyond the permissible limits. A person can be fined ₹1,000 for bursting crackers in a residential area and ₹3,000 in a silence zone. Fine for the same offence in a public procession will be ₹10,000 and ₹20,000 for residential and silence zones respectively.

NEW DELHI: Food prices rose sharply in July as weekend lockdowns to contain the Covid-19 pandemic and widespread flooding clogged supply lines in several parts of the country, leading to overall inflation firming up, data released on Thursday by the Union government showed.

The consumer-price index (CPI) in July rose 6.9% from a year ago, while food items, as measured by the index, became nearly 10% costlier, according to the data from the ministry of statistics and programme implementation. Retail prices had risen 6.2% in June, while food prices in the previous month