Noise Pollution in Palghar

Abstract

The current work was carried out during Ganesh festival which is a very popular festival in Maharashtra. Idols of lord Ganesh are brought to homes and also in public places .The idols the occasion is celebrated with huge pomp and splendour. On a normal working day and the final day of the festival, noise levels were measured at four different locations in Palghar Tehsil, a far western suburb of Mumbai city, using a sound level metre. Noise pollution indices as well as Noise Climate were computed. On both days, noise levels exceeded the central pollution control board's norms, with a noticeable increase in noise levels on the final day at all sites. On the Vaitarna site, the category of safe zone on festive and non-festive days was indicated. At 4 pm, 5 pm, and 6 pm time slots on festive days, Saphale site displayed a low to moderate risk zone category, while the rest of the time slots on festive days displayed a high risk zone category. On a festive day, the Boisar site indicated a high risk. On non-festive days, the Saphale, Palghar, and Boisar sites indicated safe zones, safe to low risk zones, and safe to moderate zones, respectively. Noise levels are not monitored by any agency in this area.