Atiq Rahman and Manjushree Maharjan :
Sound is the foundation of the life because life starts with the first crying sound of a baby when the baby born in this world. Since birth until death, people commence different kind of sounds.
We show our anger, love, hate, caprice, advice through various sounds that is as important as blood circulation in the body for normal life. Besides this, the raindrops’ tapur- tupur sound, birds’ kichir-michir sound in the forest when we hear it, our ears feel good. These sounds remain all time, which is pleasant romantic, harmless, and modest then, there would be no problem at all. But unfortunately most of the times, we are living with unpleasant sound.
Centre for Hearing and Communication, the American organization presently known as The League for the Hard of Hearing has been organizing and celebrating the day on any one Wednesday in the month of April to prevent noise pollution since 1996. 40 countries around the world celebrate the International Noise Awareness Day. “Protect Their Hearing, Protect Their Health” is the slogan to celebrate this day. In Bangladesh, it is observed to protect the health of hearing. The League for the Hard of Hearing observes the day by organizing varieties of programs. On this day, they remain soundless for one minute.
Sound is not bad for our environment. It is an essential element for living the life. But the sound pollution or noise is bad. Sound is the medium of communication not only for the human beings but also for animals. Human being can speak different than the other animals and for speaking the sound is necessary. The person who cannot hear and cannot speak, he will be detached from among all people. But, the noise pollution is one of the extreme bothering things.
Every day people’s population is increasing. To reach in certain destination, people are using different kinds of vehicles. The new cars are introducing in the streets. New infrastructures are being made. And for fulfilling these human needs, the level of noise pollution is increasing excessively. In residential, non-residential area, business area, educational institutions, and even hospitals, the intensity of noise pollution has become very serious. In front of schools and hospitals, there are signboards with “No Horn” but none of the vehicle stops to make horn.
Different equipments make noise pollutions. Some of these are : Petrolia and diesel engines such as buses, trucks, lorries, private cars, motorcycles, tempu, etc. Hydraulic horn produces (60-90 dB). Similarly, carriage beep (90-110 dB), diesel powered generator (80 dB), quarrel sound (man 120 Hz and women 250 Hz), processions, meetings, slogans, loud speaker mike (110 dB), drums (100 dB), News Paper Press (100 dB), radio, television, cassette player (45-80 dB), Jet Aircraft and Supersonic Aircraft (140 dB), the construction process (60-80 dB), launch, ferry, steamer buzzer (80 dB), hotels, bus terminals, railway station etc. produced unsolicited noise pollution.
In Dhaka city, motorcycles and private cars produce hydraulic horn which is intolerable noise. Noise pollution is one of the plagues. Although there are plenty of laws to prevent noise pollution, there is no implementation part. Our country has not least noise pollution laws to prevent excess noise in our country. There is no shortage of applications. In 2002, Bangladesh Environment Lawyers’ Association (BELA) filed a writ petition in the court to stop noise pollution. In 27 March 2002, High Court banned hydraulic horn or any kind of horrible sound produced by the vehicles, and car bulb horn should be attached points. This law is prevalent to punish the wicked.
Under the Dhaka Metropolitan Police Ordinance of 1976’s article 25, 27, 28, the noise pollution producers are provisioned to penalty of imprisonment. Under Motor Vehicles Ordinance of 1983’s article 139 and 140, if anybody breaches the order and use the horn then, they are punished and provision to the penalty in term of imprisonment.
According to Environment Protection Act 1995, the government formulated the noise pollution Rules & Regulation in 2006. This regulation recommends to keep the sound level 50 dB at the quieter area from 6am until 9pm and at night 40 dB, similarly, at residential area on the day of 55 dB and at night 45 dB, a mixed area, 60 dB at day time and at night 50 dB, a commercial area on the day of 70 dB and at night 60 dB and the industrial areas of the day 75 dB and at night 70 dB. Though the laws exist here, these are not applied and because of this, the pollution levels goes on rising and rising.
Los Angeles’s sound scientists Dr. Davern and Olufsen said that the whispering talks are being scant nowadays. Maybe in the future for even intimate talk, the thunderous sound may be obligatory. In high village back biting is more in practice there. Life is never functional with silence. Soundless life is the life near death. But today, these sounds are coming toward us as the noise troll. Environment is being polluted because of noise. Today we have worn the sound greatly. A pedestrian is silently walking on the road and a person with car makes hydraulic horn by the side and goes on damaging the pedestrian’s hearing capacity. But, he will not be punished which is not fair.
The noise producers as well as the victims are the citizens of the country. The noise pollution control is not only the government work, isn’t it also the citizens’ responsibility? The country has already became successful to overcome the educational dishonesty problem in exam hall, polythene has been banned, the three-wheelers where also banned to protect against environmental disasters. So, unless all become responsible, it won’t be possible to prevent noise pollution in the country. In Muslim religion, there is one belief that Israfil is one last sound that blows out of the trumpet. At that time, the whole world will be collapsed. Are we really waiting for that last blow of trumpet? No, let’s get together to prevent noise pollution.
(Atiqur Rahman from Manikgonj & Manjushree Maharjan from Nepal (FK Fellow), Email: [email protected], [email protected] )
