Prof R D Gupta
More than 100years ago, the leading German Bacteriologist Dr. Robert Koch (Nobel Laureate) once issued a circular with regard to the menace of noise. He said “The day will come, when man will have to fight noise as incurably as cholera and the plague.” Today his prediction has become true particularly in metropolitan cities.
“Any sound reaching the ears that serves no useful or good purpose is called noise.” Robert Alex Buron (1964) showed that noise which becomes an inseparable part of everyday life for many people, had damaging physiological, psychological & personological effects.
Today, noise as pollutant has become a great nuisance. It is now omnipresent and is a real danger especially in the crowded cities of the country where there is still no staunch legal or moral curb on noise automobile engines and use of blaring horns and high pitched conversion. “Noise Pollution” infact, has now become a health hazard and therefore, it is a burning problem of the day.
Measurement of Noise.
The intensity of noise can be measured in “bels” – a unit named after Gram Bell. It is usually measured in decibel which is one tenth of a bell. Although the threshold of hearing is zero decibel (dB) but it is only a theoretical phenomenon accompanied in experimental conditions. In general terms “silence” is normally around 25 dBs. Our hearing would be o-kay if we are not exposed to noise intensity over 50 or 55dBs. Higher the dB, higher we stand for risk of hearing.
Impact of high intensity sounds & their source.
High intensity sound affects the ear, which can adjust its parts, to reduce the chances of impairing auditory system. A sound of 90dBs for more than 10 seconds contracts the tympanic membranes through aural reflex. British scientific team has proved that noises of jet engines contribute to the break down in mental health of people living near jet airports. It is because noise of jet planes proceeds a sound of 150dBs. The British team surveyed two groups of people one living within the maximum noise area surrounding at land air and in other in an adjacent quiter zone. It was found that admission to mental hospital was 20 percent higher from the nosier zone than that of quiter zone.
According to recent survey, the noise pollutions is damaging minds and bodies, heart troubles, blood pressure and nervous disorders. Even unborn babies are believed to react to it. Investigations in the USA, Britain & Russia, have evinced that noise means danger to the overall health. It disturbs nervous system, brings tension and fatigue, interferes with metabolism. It has also been found that noise induces deafness which is preventable but is not wholly curable. Indeed, noise poses a twin challenge to industry. It influences the health of the workers and lowers productivity. Some experts have found that losses caused by hearing impairment among workers are than those caused by another occupational illness. The overall damage has to be assessed not only in terms of the impairment caused but also the cost of compensation claims, decline in output and increase in number of accidents. This is the reason that scientists believe noise to be one of the worst invisible enemies of a long and healthy life.
In India deafness is looming due to noise pollution.Three to four out of five have Indians have already lost some power of hearing. Ear experts claim that these days, it is a noisy world, getting noiser and somehow we get to learn to control it. Indian health specialists feel and believe that noise has an adverse impact on health which is even dangerous than air and water pollution. Noise pollution can change a man’s physiological state by speeding up the pulse and respiratory rates. Continued exposure to loud noise could cause ulcers or hypertension. Noise has other physical effects also. According to Medical research, it has been found and proved conclusively that it may cause sudden blindness, stammering and even fits of epilepsy particularly in children. It has also been concluded that some people who were subjected to noise, while sleeping woke up extremely fatigued.
The sound level inside a running underground train reaches about 75 dBs which is considered very high. As a result, it is impossible to converse with a fellow traveller in train. Then there are the shops playing the audio cassettes. The noise produced by so called music can only be compared to the blaring loud speakers during social and religious festivals.
Truly speaking the use of loud speakers have become virtually traditional so much so that no social function whether marriage or religious ceremony is considered complete without cacophony. Added to this, is noise created by the steros which are played with impurity in metadors and buses without any consideration for commuters.Then there are ear splitting crackers that are fired with hardly any thought for the old and sick. The most horrible is cracker bomb the noise from which is simply deafening.
It is unfortunate that noise has virtually gone unattended. In Jammu city particularly in the congested areas that noise menace is at peak at most of the places due to traffic increase. In commercial areas the noise level has crossed the maximum prescribed limit of 65dBs. The increase of dBs has also been witnessed in the places like Parade Ground, Satwari Chowk, Vikram Chowk, Shalamar etc. Even at Shalamar opposite to SMG Hospital, the noise level has increased alarmingly to 80 to 85dBs. Medical College Bakshi Nagar, the noise level is 70 to 75 dBs. Medical professionals especially ENT specialists of SMG Hospital have already expressed great concern about the significant rise in the level of noise pollution. According to them noise above 90dBs for continuous period of 8 hours a day causes temporary hearing loss, a single exposure of 150dBs produce permanent injury to the ears internal mechanism.
Checking of noise pollution
* Excessive noise can be checked by controlling noise source such as radio television, vehicles etc. Noise intrusion into a building can be best combated by sealing all outlets to the outside. Gaskets around doors can also reduce noise pollution from one place to another.
* Inside a building carpets, drapery and acoustical files provide some reduction of noise levels although such internal provision donot affect the noise intrusion from the outside.
* Planting of strips of 3m width on both sides of the roads is the simplest method to, control noise pollution created by the vehicles. While planting the trees, growing of local species having broad leaves must be preferred. Rows of tall trees with ample foliage on both sides of the high ways and busy roads have proved more beneficial for this purpose.It is because they serve as good noise absorbs by way of functioning as noise filters.
* The trees which can easily be planted with in the cities include Azadirachta Indica, Ficus religiosa, Ficus bengalensis, Saraca indica, Bauhinia variegata, Cassia fistula etc. these trees have great noise absorbing power.
* As noise is directly proportional to congestion of buildings and population so urban planning should stress on the dispersal of settlements.
* Above all pubic awareness about noise pollution & its hazards /impacts through media can also go a long way to control noise pollution
Suggestions.
* It is suggested that noise pollution has to be tackled mostly from administrative angle. This would imply to form regulatory policies for plying vehicles & running industries with strict observance of rules.
* The problem of noise pollution should be explained by way of radio, television & other media.
(The author Ex-Associate Dean cum Chief Scientist KVK SKUAST-J)
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