Noise rules: BCCI, MCA get court notice

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Monday issued notices to the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) following a public

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Monday issued notices to the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) following a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking action against the cricketing bodies for flouting noise pollution norms during cricket matches held at stadiums in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Pune.

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The division bench of justice Abhay Oka and justice Amjad Sayed granted four weeks’ time to BCCI and MCA for responding to the plea filed by advocate Kapil Soni.

According to Soni, several matches of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2013 season took place at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, Dr DY Patil Stadium at Navi Mumbai and Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium at Pune. The petition said that almost all matches ended past 10pm and during all the matches several loudspeakers and other public address systems were used in blatant violation of the Noise Pollution Rules, 2000, which prohibit use of loudspeakers at night — between 10pm and 6am — without prior permission of the authorities concerned.

Soni has, in his PIL, said that although he lodged complaints with the police commissioner of Mumbai and other state authorities, no action had been taken till date. He has sought orders from the Central and state governments to initiate legal action against BCCI for flouting norms. He has also sought imposition of a hefty fine for violation of provisions of the Environment Protection Act, 1984.