'Burst crackers from 8-10 pm with a noise cap at 90 decibel'

Kolkata: The West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB) along with Kolkata Police is taking all possible measures to rein in sound demons during Kali Puja on Sunday and immersion in the following days. The Kolkata Police top brass has instructed all its police stations to ensure that all types of crackers are burst from 8 pm to 10 pm, the time frame set up by the Supreme Court. The decibel limit of sound in the state is 90.

"We are taking all possible measures to ensure that we adhere to the Apex Court guidelines," said Kalyan Rudra, Chairman of the WBPCB.

The PCB for the first time this year has empowered its monitoring teams to lodge FIRs in police stations against violators of the 90 decibel limit in the state. Eight monitoring teams will be deployed in the city while the regional offices of the PCB in the districts will also have their own monitoring teams. The punishment under Section 188 of IPC and Section 15 of Environment Protection (EP) Act may lead to imprisonment of five years and fine to the extent of Rs 1 lakh.

The WBPCB along with Kolkata Police held a meeting with the multi-storeyed apartment associations under the Kolkata Police and the three Commissionerates — Bidhannagar, Howrah and Barrackpore and have warned them against violations of sound limit and the strict action that will be taken by the enforcers. The enforcement agencies have been facing a tough task year after year to put a leash on the bursting of illegal sound crackers above 90 decibel limit in the apartments across the city and its fringes and complaints of violation are reasonably high.

The PCB has identified several hot spots in Kolkata as well as the districts in which there will be strong surveillance. Sonarpur, Kasba, Behala, Ballygunge Circular Road, Salt Lake, Garfa, Beliaghata, Bhowanipore, Dum Dum, Maniktala, Barasat, Maheshtala, Patuli, Tamluk, Jagaddal, Chandannagar, Chinsurah, Salkia, Khardah are some of those areas which have indulged in indiscriminately bursting crackers beyond the permissible sound limit last year.

The PCB has banned the use of Disk Jockey (DJ) during the procession of idol immersion and the police top brass has asked all decorators who are responsible for the supply of DJs not to do so even if the Puja committees ask for it.

Sound limiters in microphones have been made mandatory. The Officers-in-Charge of all the 79 police stations in the city and its fringes have been asked to keep an eye on whether the decorators are abiding by the directions or not.

The OCs of the police stations have been directed to keep special vigil at the silence zones like hospitals.

The control room of the PCB whose helpline numbers are 23358212, 23353913 and 18003453390 (toll free) will be operational on Kali Puja and Diwali from 5 pm till midnight. People can also lodge their complaints of violation through the newly launched West Bengal Paribesh app. People can also lodge complaints at 100 dial. In all cases, the complainants' identity will be kept confidential.