KOCHI: In a bid to make public aware of the health problems caused by sound pollution, a meeting organised by National Initiative for Safe Sound (NISS), an initiative of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) in Kochi on Thursday, urged on the need to include the issue in the school curriculum.
The meeting witnessed participation of religious leaders, representatives from law enforcement agencies, academia, residents associations and health experts.
Addressing the gathering, Joseph Gregorios, Metropolitan, Kochi Diocese, said the issue can be addressed only by making it a part of the curriculum. He urged the IMA to take initiatives to include sound pollution in the curriculum.
Meanwhile, T P M Ibrahim Khan, president, CBSE School Management Association, expressed willingness to cooperate with the IMA to highlight the issue by educating students. Delivering the inaugural the speech, Dr Sunil K Mathai, president, IMA, Kochi, pointed out that apart from permanent deafness, sound pollution can also cause high blood pressure, increase the glucose levels in blood, negative effect on the growth of conceived babies and increase in acidity.
Dr V D Pradeepkumar, chairman, NISS Kochi Chapter, said that according to a law passed by the Parliament in 2000, the approved sound levels are 45 decibels at residential areas, 55 decibels at commercial areas and 75 decibels at industrial areas. However, even 15 years after the law was passed, no attempts were made by the governments to effectively implement it.
The participants agreed that vehicles, loudspeakers, celebrations, industries, domestic sounds etc. are the main sources of sound pollution. The health experts said that drivers of heavy vehicles, people who live on the road sides, shop owners and traffic policemen are main victims of sound pollution.