Bhavneet Goyal. Sahil Walia
Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday will hear a PIL seeking to curb motorcycles producing whirring sound due to deliberate modification of their silencers. The division bench comprising Justices Ajay Kumar Mittal and Anupinder Singh Grewal has sought information related to all the offenders from police and observed that second-time offenders need to be put behind bars.
The Traffic Police has gone into an overdrive to check the problem of modified silencers in the past few weeks, and booked at least 700 people in past two and a half months for creating noise pollution. Chandigarh Newsline spoke to the woman who took initiative to seek court intervention on the problem – visible and audible to everyone. Dr Bhavneet Goyal is a medical doctor by training and runs a coaching institute for premedical entrance exams of Class X and Class XII.
What made you to take the PIL route against bikes which produce jarring noises?
When there was no action taken on ground by the UT administration and traffic police to curb the menace of noise pollution caused by these modified bikes, even after we had intimated them about the hazard, I decided to approach the High Court for its intervention in the problem.
Did you contact the police or any other authority directly to apprise them about the problem prior to the PIL?
We wrote to the SSP Traffic and IGP Chandigarh in April 2016 and later to the UT Administrator in September 2016. We brought the issue to the notice of the Pollution Control Board as well. There was no response at all.
How do you see a PIL as a tool for a citizen to enforce her rights?
In a democratic system, a PIL is a very strong and effective tool to raise your voice for a public issue in order to improve the system. But this tool should be used very cautiously and judiciously as unnecessary litigation will put undesirable burden on our already overworked judiciary. A citizen is forced to take this route when the concerned authorities turn a deaf ear to a genuine social cause.
Has there been any impact in the city as far as bikes are concerned since the High Court issued directions on your PIL?
I have seen public notices issued by the Chandigarh Police and the Pollution Control Board in the newspapers informing people that such modification is not legal. At least, there is some movement now. Unfortunately, there is no noticeable change in my Sector (Sector 15, bridge road area). Probably, the traffic police is concentrating only on the “blast/cracker” sound produced after modification. In fact, modified silencers to produce a loud whirring sound even without the blast is also illegal and a constant source of noise-pollution. Till the time, the traffic cops are trained to identify the modified bikes, this menace cannot be tackled. There should be a use of decibel meters in the city for clear and objective assessment.
What further action do you think is needed to curb the problem? Do you think such modification of silencers should totally be banned?
There are two types of illegal modifications. One which creates a loud blast/cracker sound and the second is to modify the silencer to exacerbate the normal engine running sound above the permissible norms. The traffic cops should be given special training to identify both the types of modifications. Certain problem areas in the city like Sector 15, 11, 10 and Panjab University should be earmarked and there should be permanent nakas of traffic cops there. Yes, the modification of silencers should totally be banned . They are not only a cause of noise pollution but also a public health hazard.
What other problems do you see are ailing the city traffic?
There are many. It should be made mandatory for cyclists and cycle rickshaws to ply on the cycle tracks instead of the main road. The city roads are bursting on their seams with the traffic load. The administration must strengthen the public transport system and rethink about the plan for a metro transport. Also, lane driving should be promoted to ease the flow of traffic. I hope this campaign does not last only as long as the PIL is in the High Court. I hope the traffic police finds a permanent and long lasting solution to this menace and we can all live in a ‘quieter Chandigarh’.