Royal Enfield Bullet's modified silencers, vehicle speakers cause noise pollution: PIL in HC

The thumping and backfiring sounds from Royal Enfield Bullet's modified silencers and loud music from vehicular speakers pose a health risk to the people, especially minors, senior citizens and those with medical conditions, apart from contributing to noise pollution, a PIL in the Delhi High Court claimed on Tuesday.

A bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V K Rao issued notices to the Centre, Delhi government, police and the pollution controlling authorities and sought their responses to the plea which has urged the court to order a ban on manufacture, sale and use of various kinds of pressure horns, speakers and modified silencers, including those on Royal Enfield Bullet bikes, in the national capital.

The order came on the petition moved by an NGO, Justice for Rights Foundation, and a law student Prateek Sharma claiming that loud sound producing equipment, such as pressure horns, woofers and modified silencers on vehicles, cause health problems including stress, headache, fatigue, insomnia, irritability, blood pressure variations, cardiac disease and digestive disorders.

The plea, filed through advocate Harpreet Singh Hora, has contended that the vehicular noise pollution menace was rampant in areas like North Campus here, specifically Malka Ganj, Hudson Lane, Vijay Nagar, Gupta Colony, Chhatra Marg and other areas in and around the Delhi University (DU).

It has sought urgent orders from the court to direct removal of such loud sound producing equipment from vehicles plying in these areas, as during the DU students union elections there is widespread use of cars and bikes fitted with such devices.

The petitioners have alleged that intervention of the courts was necessary "due to the apathy and inaction of the authorities" who are not making efforts to remove such hazardous sound producing equipment from vehicles.

"The said equipment are manufactured, sold and purchased unregulated and unchecked in the market and serve no purpose but to create nuisance and annoyance," the plea stated.