Noise Pollution in Last Day of Ganesh Festival

Abstract

Junnar is a city with thousands of years of history in Pune district of the Indian state of Maharashtra. The nearby fort of shivneri is the birthplace of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the founder of the Maratha Empire, and very few kilometers located at two major ashtavinayak temples. Junnar taluka has been declared as the first tourist place in Pune district by the government of Maharashtra on 9 January 2018. Every year, the number of noise pollution is at a record high in the junnar taluka during the last day of the Ganesh festival. This day, loudspeakers, DJs, and traditional instruments like dhol, tashaetc can be played around the hospital, schools, and religious temples as in junnar city has added to the rising decibel levels. According to the noise pollution rule, the permissible decibel level during the night is 40 dB in the silence zone and 45 dB in a residential zone. In September 2018 for the last day of the Ganesh festival was monitored near by 10 major locations in a different times. These locations are into a silent and residential zone. All the sites under study showed higher sound levels than the standard limits given by Central Pollution Control Board.

Introduction

Noise pollution is generally defined as regular exposure to elevated sound levels that may lead to adverse effects in humans or other living organisms. According to the World Health Organization, sound levels less than 70 dB are not damaging to living organisms, regardless of how long or consistent the exposure is. Exposure for more than 8 hours to constant noise beyond 85 dB may be hazardous.

Various physical disorders due to higher noise include temporary deafness, headache, and an increase in blood pressure. The rise in cholesterol levels causes constriction of blood vessels which increases the priority of heart attacks. The negative effect of exposure to excessive noise during pregnancy period.

Junnar which has thousands of years of history, dense forests, forts, and cave complexes would be developed as a 'tourism-tehsil' of Maharashtra. Nestled in the Sahyadri mountain ranges of the Western Ghats, Junnar, is also famous for its leopard population and wildlife. The teak forests give a unique view of this place. The dams like Manikdoh, Yedgaon on the Kukadi river, and the Chilewadi on the Mandvi river give a unique look to the rich nature.

The Khodad village in this tehsil also houses the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT), the largest telescope at meter wavelengths in the world, which attracts radio astronomers from different countries.

The noise levels across the junnar tehsil are on rises yearly. There are many causes to increase the in noise but many of these ones of them are the last day of the Ganesh festival during this time I notice that the noise level increased in 2018 compared to this past year and its more hazard’s to human being and junnar nature.

Noise pollution effect on human health, such as Hearing Problems, Cardiovascular Issues, Sleep Disturbances, and Mental Health Problems, and brings day-to-day activities to a standstill. Recent studies on the impact of low and high-intensity sound on marine life showed that aquatic animals like cuttlefish and octopus suffer serious damage from noise pollution. Research has proven that aircraft-induced noise is responsible for a significant decrease in reproduction activity in a wide range of animals.

In the present paper, an attempt has been made to compare the noise levels at important locations of the city with standard limits. Noise monitoring as carried to assess the noise level and to identify different sources of noise in different locations of the city.

Materials and Methods

Sites of measurements

In September 2018 for the last day of the Ganesh festival monitored nearby 09 major locations were selected for measuring noise levels during this study for different times and distances (like 25m and 50m). These locations are into silent and residential zone. (Including that Hospital, School and Religious temples, etc).

Sampling method and duration

The ambient noise level was monitored with the help of a sound level meter during the evening time (6.00 pm -10.00 pm). Leq noise rating system was used to calculate the noise level as there was a higher fluctuation in the ambient noise level during the festive period

At each selected location, the instrument was operated continuously for a measuring period of 15 - 20 min during which several readings of noise were recorded and saved. At the end of this period, the minimum and maximum levels in addition to the mean value were considered as the net results. The last day of Ganesh festival duration was selected at different times and distances from 25m to 50m of the different major locations in junnar city. Readings were recorded after 1 min interval of 15 to 20 min at every site during the evening time.

Observed noise values were compared with that of the standards prescribed in the Environmental Protection Act, 1986 and the standards of CPCB. The Noise Pollution Rules, 2000 have given noise limits for different areas. These limits were used to compare the noise levels in the respective areas under study.

Result

The noise pollution levels in Junnar about 9 major locations, it has been observed that Sadabazar (North and South), Shankarpura and Telibhudhawar chowk leads as the noisiest area in junnar city in the last day of ganesh festival. Most of the areas observed decibel levels higher than the permitted limit.

According to the report, while the prescribed nighttime noise limit for silent areas is 40 decibels (dB), and for residential areas are 45 decibels (dB), the recorded level of noise in such areas has approx. two times greater than the prescribed limit.

Discussion

In the present study, the average noise level at all locations was found to be above the prescribed limits of CPCB during the last day of the Ganesh festival in September 2018. The noise level showed a significant variation at a different location which was higher than the standard limit. average noise during the night time at a distance of 25m was 103 dB and a distance of 50m was 80db which is higher than the standard limits of noise in the residential zone and silence zone, respectively.

The reason is that on the last day of the Ganesh festival loudspeakers, DJs and traditional instruments like dhol, Tasha, etc can be played around the hospital, school, residential and religious temples as in junnar city has added to the rising decibel levels. The present study is an attempt to access the level of noise pollution during the last day Ganesh festival. There is a need of increasing awareness of among people.

Conclusion

This research study is based on the expected relationship between standard noise limit and observed value from this survey and findings it is evident that festival noise can affect the human work efficiency at Government Offices, Banks, educational institutes and Commercial Business, etc. Avoiding this problem requires the right selection of instruments will be used in this festival to minimize the level of noise.

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