Bengaluru's silence zones among city's noisiest areas, reveals data
Bengaluru: Areas designated as 'silence zones' in Bengaluru, primarily around hospitals and educational institutions, have emerged as some of the noisiest pockets in the city, often recording sound levels far exceeding permissible limits, especially during night hours.
According to the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board’s (KSPCB) May data, cited by The New Indian Express, the RVCE Mysore Road zone recorded night-time noise levels of 57.8 decibel (dB), exceeding the legal limit by 44.5%, while the Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health (NIMHANS) zone showed a 29% rise above permissible levels.
Ironically, even the KSPCB’s regional office complex at SG Halli, categorised under a residential category, showed one of the sharpest violations, with a 61.8% spike in noise levels at night.
Meanwhile, industrial zones like Peenya and Whitefield, typically assumed to be high-noise areas, were found to be compliant with noise regulations.
Between February and April this year, average night-time readings at silence zones like NIMHANS and RVCE Mysore Road hovered between 61 and 64 dB(A) — over 50% higher than permitted levels. RVCE even peaked at 70.3 dB(A), while NIMHANS recorded levels ranging from 56 to 63 dB(A). These areas are meant to remain quiet due to their proximity to hospitals and educational institutions, yet every month they show clear and repeated violations, added the report.
Prof Ashish Verma, Transportation Systems Engineering, Convenor, IISc Sustainable Transportation Lab, quoted in the report, highlighted the lack of noise barriers in Bengaluru, unlike cities such as Mumbai and Delhi. Citing IIT-Bombay as an example, where such barriers were installed to counter construction-related noise, he emphasised the urgent need for similar measures near hospitals and schools in Bengaluru.
Rajkumar Dugar, founder of Citizens for Citizens (C4C), pointed out the prevalence of illegal, multi-toned, and excessively loud horns, especially in silence and residential zones. “Noise pollution from vehicles, especially due to illegal horns and unnecessary honking, is a silent public health crisis. It affects physical and mental well-being, slows recovery in hospitals, and lowers productivity,” TNIE quoted him as saying.
Dugar also called for stricter enforcement against not just the use of illegal horns but their manufacture and fitting. “Noise monitoring in a city like Bengaluru cannot be limited to just 10 locations — KSPCB must scale up,” he added.
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Woman robbed of gold jewellery worth Rs 3.35 lakh in Beed
Beed (PTI): A woman was robbed of gold jewellery worth Rs 3.35 lakh at Kaij bus station in Beed district, a police official said on Monday.
The incident took place on Sunday evening when Ashwini Gholve, a resident of Teacher Colony, was boarding a bus for Nashik, he added.
"An unidentified woman opened the victim's handbag and fled with gold jewellery worth Rs 3.35 lakh that was a kept in a box. The victim was on her way to attend her brother's wedding. The stolen items include a one 'tola' gold ring, a gold mangalsutra, a ring and a pair of earrings weighing 5 gram each," he said.
"The suspect is seen in footage from one of the CCTV cameras in the vicinity. She was with a minor girl. Further probe into the case is underway," the Kaij police station official added.
