The maharashtra government was ordered by the bombay high court on thursday to have an integrated system to regulate decibel levels in their public address systems or other sound-emitting devices at places of worship and institutions, regardless of religion, after ruling that the use of loudspeakers is not a necessary component of any religion.
 
In order to guarantee that no religious location uses loudspeakers to produce noise pollution, the bench of Justices AS Gadkari and sc Chandak decided that police have the authority to take action against violators and rigorously enforce the Noise pollution Rules, 2000.

The bench noted that individuals typically wait to complain about issues until they become unbearable and bothersome. "We are of the view that, without requiring identification of the complainant, the police must act on such complaints, more so to avoid such complainants being targets or ill will and developing hatred," the court stated.
 
According to the bench, the state could also instruct police to examine noise levels using mobile applications that measure decibel levels.
 
The high court bench emphasized that police officers have an obligation to address any complaints and have the authority to revoke authorization for loudspeaker usage given to organizations if they discover recurrent infractions of the aforementioned Noise pollution Rules.
 
The Jaago Nehru nagar Residents Welfare Association, represented by attorney kaushik Mhatre, filed a plea with the bench arguing that Chunabhatti and Nehru nagar, Kurla (East), are home to several masjids and madrasas. According to the petition, the noise produced by the loudspeakers, microphones, and/or amplifiers installed in the aforementioned masjids is intolerable.
 
Mhatre argued that the law prohibits the use of loudspeakers in the early hours, such as around 5:00 am, and that on festival days, they are used until 1:30 am, which is past the legal limit for their use, even if the relevant authorities are said to have granted permission.
 
Mhatre said that for reasons that only they knew, the police officers assigned to the Chunabhatti and Nehru nagar police Stations failed to take the required action to stop the noise pollution.
 
The bench noted that mumbai is a multicultural metropolis with people of many religions in every area after hearing arguments from both parties.
 
As the high court noted, "the petitioners' plea to require the state authorities to carry out the supreme Court's instructions and several rulings of this court would demonstrate that there has been a willful breach of the orders.
 
 
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G GOWTHAM

24/01/2025 12:35 PM