Goa minister writes to Centre to relax sound pollution norms

With late night music events reined in during the Christmas and New Year weeks and several high profile music festivals having to shut down early due to the High Court's strict directives, the Goa government has now sought relaxations from central government to the Noise Pollution Regulation and Control Rules, 2000, and the creation of special entertainment zones citing interests concerns of the state tourism industry and promotion of local festivals.

Goa's Environment Minister Nilesh Cabral on Wednesday told the ongoing state legislative session that he had written to Union Minister for Forests and Climate Change Bhupendra Yadav to seek the relevant relaxations to protect the tourism industry in the state, which he said was the backbone of Goa's economy. The letter to Yadav was tabled on Wednesday in the state assembly.

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Cabral's letter has urged Yadav that the state's tourism-savvy coastal areas “need an independent categorisation or zone as well as the (independent) definition of daytime and night time” which should be treated on par with industrial areas, where noise pollution norms are relaxed as compared to civilian enclaves. The Environment Minister has also urged Yadav to amend the definition of "night time" in these zones to facilitate playing of music in later hours.

“The tourism industry is the backbone of the Goan economy and also a main source of livelihood for the local population. Being a popular beach destination since the 70's, today the tourist footfalls are about one crore as against the local population of about 15.5 lakhs. Goa has also evolved as a wedding destination as well a destination for conventions, events and conferences," Cabral said.

In December, the Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court which was hearing a petition against rampant late night parties in the coastal belt, had directed police and district administration authorities to maintain a strict vigil on such events, which are mandated to stop playing loud music by 10 pm. Loud music, under the existing laws, can only be played on notified days set aside for state endorsed celebrations and other religious events, during which loud music can be played up to 12 am.

Cabral has however said that the quantum of notified days was too few, and has also urged Yadav to expand the list.

“This (notified days) gets exhausted by the State Government to hold recognised State festivals. Therefore the State is not able to permit the traditional festivals which have been going on for centuries… thus depriving the Local traditional festivals their rightful need for celebrating their festivals,” he said.

“Goa has a Unique and diverse Culture and historically right from the pre- liberation era the local community has been celebrating marriages with joy and pomp past midnight. The local village level religious celebrations i.e zatra and feast also are a late evening celebration which were going past midnight and a common feature in all the villages across Goa. But after the introduction of the Noise Pollution (Regulation & Control) Rules, 2000 as amended all these activities are now curtailed and causing legal impediments to such religious cultural activities,” he also said.