Provide incentive to pilots who cause less noise pollution:NGT

The National Green Tribunal today directed the Ministry of Civil Aviation and aviation regulator DGCA to mull over the possibilty of providing incentives to pilots who create least noise pollution while landing aircraft at IGI Airport here.
"What do you (ministry) propose to lessen the noise pollution? Why don't you consider providing incentives to the pilots who generate least noise pollution while landing at airports? Think of something constructive," a bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar observed.
It also slammed the government for allowing constructions to come up near the airports and said there should be some limit to development activities close to such places.

"You people talk of foreign countries. You are not restricting development near airports. Gurgaon, Dwarka, Palam, Vasant Kunj, all these places have come upto IGI Airport. There has to be some limit," the bench said.
The observations came during hearing a plea a batch of pleas filed by the residents of South Delhi's Vasant Kunj, Bijwasan and Indian Spinal Injuries Centre (ISIC), a super-specialty hospital, seeking directions to reduce noise level in the residential areas near the airport.
The green panel also asked the ministry and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to develop green cover around the area and increase the height of the boundary wall of the airport to minimise sound pollution.

It also directedd the ministry to submit its views on effective use of "reverse thrust" to decrease noise pollution caused due to operation of flights at the airport.

Thrust reversal, also called reverse thrust, is the temporary diversion of an aircraft engine's exhaust so that it is directed forward, rather than backwards.
The bench, however, rejected the contention of the petitioner that there should be sound-proofing of houses near the airport and cost should be borne by the respondents.
The matter is now listed for next hearing on February 23.
The Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) had last year come out with draft noise standards for airports, reducing the existing threshold for noise limits.

The NGT had last directed the Ministry of Civil Aviation and DGCA to provide data on domestic and international flights at IGI Airport with details of their departure and arrivals.
The NGT had earlier expressed displeasure over the
government's failure to fix environmental norms on noise pollution and directed the Ministry of Environment, DGCA and the Central Pollution Control Board to convene a meeting and take a clear decision on the issue.
The pleas alleged that the noise created by aircraft at the IGI airport was affecting the health of the residents of nearby areas.
The hospital claimed that the noise created by planes were usually between the range of 75 and 94 decibels, which was "clearly beyond the stipulated standards laid down under the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000".

The Supreme Court had last November referred the matter to the NGT, saying the parties would not claim any interim order before the tribunal.