Noida: Loud music from banquet halls, a nuisance for residents

Noida: It was late at night and Saloni (17) a resident of F Block, Sector 50, Noida, was studying for her board exams. No matter how hard she tried she was unable to focus on her studies. The thing which was hampering her concentration was a constant and unrelenting loud music blaring out of this banquet hall located near her home. The music went on till the wee hours of the morning making it a nightmarish experience for Saloni. There are five banquet halls in this residential pocket. The nuisance of pounding loud music is so grave, according to residents in the vicinity, that many families have moved out and shifted to other places.

Expressing his fury, Rajesh Sahay, a resident of Shubhkamna Apartments, which is opposite to four banquet halls, avers, “These banquet halls contribute a lot to noise pollution. The distance between banquet halls and societies is hardly 50 meters. The loud music from woofers makes our windows vibrate. We have senior citizens who are sensitive to such loud noises and students who are preparing for their board exams. There are around 20 residential apartment buildings concentrated in that area in front of these banquet halls. They play very loud music till late at night. Legally, no one can play loud music after 10 but this rule is not adhered to. Senior citizens have to go to bed early. People who are at 'work from home' suffer too. Residents come to the RWA to complain about this issue and ask them to lodge an FIR."

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Another hassled resident of Stellar Kings Court, Rajiva Singh, says, “We are never against any celebrations in the public area, however, such celebrations should not result in inconvenience for fellow residents living in close vicinity of these banquet halls. Noise pollution has been a big issue for residents in this pocket for several years now. Marriage banquet halls opposite sec 50 F block generate high decibel noise from music and crackers during late nights and early mornings. Both decibels and timings are much beyond the stipulated guidelines of the administration. Another issue that we face due to these banquet halls is a shortage of parking space in these banquet halls, which forces the guests to come across the service lanes of F block for parking their vehicles, where normally the residents of F block park their vehicles”.

Peeyush Srivastava, a resident of Shubhkamna Apartment, says “This problem has been there for quite some time now. There is no consideration of timings, the banquet people do whatever they feel like. Crackers are burst till late at night by the people in wedding the processions and then there is loud music playing all night long. The residents of Kendriya Vihar, next to Noida Sector 34 metro station, have been suffering from this issue for a very long time. They have two banquet halls right in front. Quite a few of the residents have already left their flats because they felt that nothing can be done about this issue. They bought this place, renovated it, they were living here for the last 10 years but at last, they all had to sell their place and move to a quieter place. My daughter is giving her board exams but she is not able to concentrate nor is she able to sleep properly.”

Concerned residents have written a letter to the Noida Authority complaining about this issue along with some proposed solutions. On some occasions, the residents also call up the local police to complain but loud music but they point out that the police only stop the music for a little while and soon things get back to their noisy worst. In a suggestion, they mentioned that the banquet hall operators and celebrating processions should strictly follow the timing for music defined by the law as per the Hon'ble Supreme Court. Also, only permissible firecrackers (green and less noisy) should be allowed for marriage procession or other celebrations in residential areas. Residents requested the authority to take heed of this issue that is affecting a large number of people.