The success of an awareness campaign in Cubbon Park seems to show that Bengaluru has the potential to be free of noise pollution, activists say.
The campaign was carried out earlier this month to make the park honking-free.
Rajkumar Dugar, convener of Citizens for Citizens, who was a part of the campaign, informed The Observer that many people are unaware Cubbon Park is already a silent zone. “Within minutes of the team taking position with placards along the roads inside Cubbon Park, we noticed a significant drop in the usage of horns. People were consciously avoiding using horns when their attention was drawn towards this aspect.”
Silent zones are areas where honking and bursting of firecrackers etc are prohibited.
The awareness campaign had citizens, students and faculty of Mount Carmel College (MCC) participating.
Rajani Korah, an MCC professor, said boards put up by the horticulture department to make people aware are not serving their purpose. “We need to have bigger boards put up at the entrance and exit to make people know that the park is a silent zone.” People appreciated the effort.
Jayaprakash B, assistant scientific officer of KSPCB, said: “We do noise monitoring and disseminate the information to line departments like the traffic police and the transport department. Even though it is an industrial area, the noise pollution in the Peenya Industrial Area was within limits in October.”
The KSPCB has launched initiatives to check vehicles around the city twice a month to ensure they are not causing noise pollution.
Kiran, a vendor in Cubbon Park said: “I am here from dawn to dusk. After the campaign, I see that honking has reduced.”
Considering Bengaluru’s traffic, it might look like a far-fetched dream, but the reduction of noise pollution in Cubbon Park is a sign that this could be followed in other areas as well.
arsha.s@iijnm.org
