Noise pollution

Noise pollution

August 2024

Making a noise about noise pollution 

Savitha Rao from Mumbai always found  loud noises difficult to handle. To  know more about this issue, she started  doing research and was appalled by what she  discovered. She found that noise pollution was a serious problem having an adverse impact on the health of human beings, birds, animals, and  marine life, and that every age group—from  infants to senior citizens—is impacted by it.  

Hearing damage is permanent and cumulative, and a failure to address it puts a burden on  individuals, families, and the health care system.  

Savitha felt that India needs to take noise  pollution seriously as the stress caused by noise  could aggravate as well as complicate the existing  health problems faced by many and even delay  or limit recovery from them.  

Since she wanted to make a difference in this  area, Savitha published a book and founded an  NGO, Noise in Our Nation which was a part of  India Positive Citizen Initiative in 2022. She  realised that most people are aware that they  should not smoke or consume alcohol or greasy  food regularly. And that if they do so, it violates  the doctor’s guidance. But, since the ill effects of  noise pollution don’t feature in a doctor-patient  conversation, people tend to think of it as an  inconvenience and irritant, and not a health  hazard.  

Savitha regularly conducts workshops in  schools and colleges, knowing that they have an  

- By Jamuna Rangachari 

Savitha Rao 

important role to play in sensitising children and  youth about noise and in laying the foundation  for a generation of citizens who value quiet.  She has also reached out to the Indian Medical  Association (IMA) regarding noise pollution and  the impact it has on health. Savitha states that  the noise in our nation is not limited to the roads  but extends to most spaces, such as malls, stores,  restaurants, and gyms. Today, it is impossible to  find a quiet restaurant.  

Noise pollution is a symptom of a society that  has accepted the idea that ‘louder is better’ when,  actually, quietude is what everyone needs for a  healthy life. Savitha avers that each one of us  can, with consistent action, make a difference to  the decibel levels in our homes and outdoors.