PORVORIM: The High Court vented its frustration and judicial anger quite clearly on the unabated, contemptuous and unchecked sound pollution in the party belt of North Goa.
“It is clear that matters are getting out of hand and there will come a time when we will have to start calling the Police Inspector of the police station to court and then their higher ups. Please put mechanisms in place before we reach that stage,” were the closing statements of Justice M S Karnik in Writ Petition 412 of 2024, clubbed with three others.
As many as 32 commercial units which were granted consent to operate, have now been issued a corrigendum to install online noise monitoring system by the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB), according to an affidavit submitted to the High Court of Bombay at Goa during the hearing of a contempt petition on noise pollution.
The court asked pertinently, “The question is how not a single person has been arrested? Your (GSPCB) consent to operate gives coordinates of the place. The online monitoring system is the best,” observed Justice Menezes.
“We are getting to the root of the matter. Implementation is something we are thinking of. GSPCB is instructed to present details of Consent to Operate issued to units with their coordinates and with the name and address of person in-charge of the establishment. The details should be provided on or before August 19, 2024,” ordered Justice Menezes.
Amicus Curiae Nigel Da Costa Frias submitted suggestions “for long term prevention and regulation of noise pollution”, with one of them being “The authorities should consider not permitting holding of EDMs and late night parties /events in open air areas located in residential zones”.
“It is very odd that something good should be removed. The provision of noise monitoring system was included during the Sunburn case. The GSPCB is supposed to display location where permission has been granted to ensure inspections can be conducted ceaselessly,” mused Justice Valmiki Menezes.
GSPCB advocate, Manish Salkar agreed that noise monitoring systems needed to be implemented and promised to get back to the court on locations of places granted to be uploaded on the GSPCB website.
“We must start with Anjuna as a test case and see how things improve from there. You have to coordinate and provide a list of establishments that have been given Consent to Operate (COp) and the rest need to be shut down,” observed Justice Menezes.
“If there is no action, we will slowly have to start calling everyone,” warned Justice Karnik.