E-Paper
Action against 40 Ganesh mandals for laser light, noise violations
The cases were registered under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) after inspections revealed violations across multiple police station areas, Wakad (17 cases), Pimpri (8), Nigdi (5), Sangvi (5), Dapodi (3), and Talegaon Dabhade (2)
Pimpri Chinchwad police have booked 40 Ganesh mandals for using banned laser beam lights and causing noise pollution during the recently concluded Ganesh festival.
The cases were registered under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) after inspections revealed violations across multiple police station areas, Wakad (17 cases), Pimpri (8), Nigdi (5), Sangvi (5), Dapodi (3), and Talegaon Dabhade (2).
“Use of laser beam lights was banned during the procession. During our inspection, it was found that some mandals continued using them, hence we booked them under the relevant sections,” said Shivaji Pawar, Deputy Commissioner of Police.
Separately, police have registered five cases of noise pollution, three at Bhosari and two at Nigdi police station, for exceeding prescribed sound limits during immersion processions. A senior officer said that noise levels were also closely tracked with the help of monitoring devices, based on which cases have been filed.
Meanwhile, the Pune city police said that the compilation of similar data from across city limits is still in progress and will be released soon.
While noise levels during Ganesh immersion in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad were lower than last year, they were still far above permissible limits, data from the COEP Technological University (COEPTU) has revealed.
On Laxmi Road, the city’s main immersion route, the average noise level this year was recorded as 92.6 decibels. While this was lower compared to previous years, when noise levels routinely crossed 100 decibels, it was still considerably higher than the prescribed 55 decibels for residential areas. In 2024, the COEPTU data indicated that the average noise level in the central parts of the city was 94 decibels, compared to 129 decibels in 2023.
At Khanduji Baba Chowk, the lowest level was recorded as 61 decibels on Saturday afternoon, while the peak was 109 decibels on the morning of September 7. At least eight of the 10 chowks monitored registered average noise readings above 90 decibels.
