Environmental Issue

                    "Noise level exceeds in City"

Aurangabad, 22 August, 2017: Quasi-judicial officials such as the police and the regional transport office have failed to enforce the notification of the state environment department regarding permissible sound levels for horns and sirens of vehicles playing in the city.
This was revealed in the Environmental Status Report (ESR) released during the standing committee meeting of the Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) on Tuesday. The report said the noise levels in the city exceeded the permissible limits by about 30-40 decibels (dB). The noisiest areas were Gulmandi, Baba Petrol Pump square, cidco bus stand, Jalna road and Waluj.

The 115-page report says that the minimum permissible noise level during the day is 45 dB at night.
Noise levels above 80 dB are  health hazard.
In Gulmandi, the noise level was 80 dB at noon and touched a high of 88.4 dB at 6 pm, which was also the case at the Cidco bus stand.

It was after repeated persuasion by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) that the civic body prepared an ESR for the first time by appointing a Nashik-based agency.
"A few months back, the MPCB member secretary had issued directives to the civic body, RTO and traffic police to effectively implement the environment department notification with regard to horns and sirens," an MPCB official from the Aurangabad region said.

"The environment department's notification and the order issued by the National Green Tribunal, western zone bench, Pune, in October 2013 clearly mentions that the police and RTO should ensure compliance of the use of sirens and multi-toned horns as per the prescribed limit, these should be removed from the vehicles concerned.

The vehicles, their owners, users or public authority under which such vehicle is used should be dealt with appropriately for commiting breach of the directions as required under various laws,"the MPCB official said.

The environment department's notification also states that the enforcing authority has been directed to start testing noise levels of vehicles and forward the revised compliance certificate to the transport commissioner to enable the RTOs to register only approved vehicles.