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Noise pollution is one of the emerging threats to health in modern era. The ill effect of acute and chronic effects of noise is though well known to doctors and scientist; people of India are largely ignorant about it. Our country is known for many festivals, the celebration mood makes us forget about the slow poison of noise pollution. We not only damage our health but also many pregnant women, aged person and children get permanent ill effects to the health.
The WHO describes the impact of noise pollution thus;
Annoyance, stress, high blood pressure, sleep loss, inability to concentrate, inability to learn, heart attacks, strokes, loss of productivity, etc. Fetuses and newborns are most affected and may lose hearing!
Decibels (dB)
A decibel is a unit for expressing the intensity of sound on a scale from zero (for the average least perceptible sound) to about 130 for the average pain level. Even small values in dB levels mean large difference in terms of sound pressure. For example the sound pressure at 120 dB is a hundred times more than at 80 dB. An increase of just 3 dB means there is doubling in sound pressure.
EP Act 1986 and the Rules on Noise 1989 and
Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules 2000
Under this Act the following rules have been framed:
1. Noise is a pollutant
2. Maximum Decibel levels permitted as per Rules are as follows:
Area Day time Night time
6 A.M. to 9 P.M. 9 P.M. to 6 A.M. --> Under Noise Rules 1989
6 A.M. to 10 P.M. 10 P.M. to 6 A.M. --> Under Noise Pollution Rules 2000
a) Industrial 75dB 70dB
b) Commercial 65dB 55dB
c) Residential 55dB 45dB
d) Silence Zone 50dB 40dB
Silence Zone upto 100 meters around hospitals, educational institutions, Courts etc. Loudspeakers, vehicular horns are not allowed in Silence Zone at all.
3. Anyone violating the Act and Rules is liable for severe punishment; fine upto Rs.1,00,000/- and/or imprisonment upto 5 years.
4. If the institutions are found to be violating the Act, the Head of the Institution would be liable for punishment, even Government Institutions are not spared from this prosecution. Ideal decibel levels at home would be 45dB during the day and 35dB during the night (in the bedroom). Usual decibel levels due to Radio and TV are 40 to 50, louder volumes could produce 60-65 dB or more; kitchen grinders 60-70dB, office typewriters 55 to 60dB, vehicular engines and horns 80—85 dB, roadside drilling machines 90-100 dB, aircraft noise 110-120 dB, loudspeakers 90-100 dB, could reach upto 100-120 dB during the festivals, loud noise firecrackers produce sound levels upto 110-120 dB (which are enough to permanently damage the eardrums).
According to the Noise Pollution (Regulations and Control) Rules 2000,
A LOUDSPEAKER OR A PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEM SHALL NOT BE USED AT NIGHT BETWEEN 10 P.M. TP 6 A.M. EXCEPT IN CLOSED PREMISES FOR COMMUNICATION WITHIN, for example AUDITORIA, CONFERENCE ROOMS, COMMUNITY HALLS AND BANQUET HALLS. FOR COMPLAINTS TO BE MADE THE NOISE LEVEL EXCEEDS THE AMBIENT NOISE STANDARDS BY 10 db OR MORE. COMPLAINTS CAN BE MADE TO AUTHOORITY. THE AUTHORITY SHALL ACT ON THE COMPLAINT AND TAKE ACTION AGAINST THE VIOLATOR IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THESE RULES AND ANY OTHER LAW IN FORCE.
Association of Medical Consultants Mumbai, is an organization of 5000 postgraduate doctors from all over Mumbai. The association is making great efforts to educate public at large about the menace of NOISE POLLUTION. Many members of the AMC from Ghatkopar area have come forward to additionally give their services for those suffering from hearing loss. They will be doing hearing test (Audiometry ) in their clinic free of any charges and they will guide them for further treatment also.
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DR SADHANA J. SHAH
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POOJA ENT CENTER, ABOVE SARASWAT BANK, BHATWADI, GHATKOPAR-WEST
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DR. ANIL KARADKAR
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DR. PRAGNA PARIKH
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Issued in Public Interest
By the
ASSOCIATION OF MEDICAL CONSULTANTS MUMBAI
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1. Total Membership : 6083
2. Members under Professional Indemnity Scheme of AMC : 3464
3. Persons(Members & Family)under H & A Scheme : 3278
4. Members under CBS Scheme : 898
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Dear Members, This is to bring to your notice that MPCB had issued a Public Notice on the 18th of July 2008 and demarcated particular wards for particular transporters for disposal of Biomedical Waste. This Public Notice mandated us to register with the designated transporter of our respective wards. Effectively it would have meant that we would have to cancel our registration with our existing transporter and register with the new one designated by MPCB. We at the Association had our reservations about the same and forwarded our objections to MPCB. A meeting was held on the 7th of August 2008 with the Member Secretary, MPCB. The transporters were also invited. The consensus arrived at the meeting was that the ward wise distribution of transporters would be applicable to only the newly registering generators. The generators already registered with any transporter can continue with their existing arrangements. The MPCB will issue a fresh notification to this effect shortly. Please note that the MPCB is now going to be proactive and any non-complying generators of biomedical waste are going to be heavily penalized and also issued closure notices. We therefore request all members to ensure strict compliance of the Biomedical Waste Disposal Rules 1998. In case any transporter is not providing the services to the optimum level promised, the member is requested to send a fax of his complaint letter to MPCB (Fax No.: 022- 24044532) and a copy of the same to the Association office (Fax No.: 022-26821109). For any further clarifications please feel free to contact the undersigned. Dr. Anand Parihar Dr. Rajeev Walawalkar Dr. Sudhir NaikPresident Hon. Secretary Convenor Nursing Home Cell
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An additional post of Trustee was created at a special General Body Meeting in order to meet the growing demands of hectic activity at AMC headquarters. The General Body on 20th July 2008, authorised the Board of Trustees to appoint an additional Trustee. .The Board of Trustees is pleased to announce the inclusion of Dr. Bipin V. Shah as a Trustee..Dr. Lalit KapoorManaging Trustee
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A delegation of the AMC met Hon'ble Shri R.R. Patil (Deputy Chief Minister & Home Minister) on 07.07.2008 at 9.30 A.M. at his official residence “Chitrakoot”, to submit a memorandum. President Dr. Anand Parihar, Past Presidents Dr. Ketan Parikh, Dr. Umesh Oza, Hon. Secretary Dr Rajeev Walavalkar & myself discussed issues related to violence in hospitals with the honorable minister. The delegation lauded the government's decision to curb the attacks and violence in hospitals and against the doctors working in the health care system in Maharashtra. The meeting lasted for about an hour. The minister gave a very patient hearing and was well versed with the current scenario. He appreciated the selfless contribution of medical community in providing health care to the deprived sections of the society. The minister stressed the need to educate the masses about the complications, as well as, mishaps during medical treatments. He promised the delegation, that, an Ordinance to prevent attacks on medical & para -medical personnel shall be promulgated in current Assembly Session, probably within a week. AMC thanks our esteemed member and senior Gynaecologist Dr. Vijaya Patil for arranging this meeting & also actively projecting the problems faced by the doctors to the Hon'ble minister. Following memorandum was submitted to Shri R. R. Patil. Date: 5TH July 2008 To, Shri R.R.Patil,Dy. Chief Minister,Government of MaharashtraMumbai. Respected Sir, The Association of Medical Consultants Mumbai was established in 1972 and currently has a membership of over 6000 medical consultants from the cities of Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Dombivali, Ulhasnagar, Kalyan and neighbouring townships. Our members include medical Specialists and super specialists from the Corporate and non-Corporate referral hospitals (both Governmental and private) and also individual consultants practicing through their own consulting rooms, clinics and small and medium Nursing Homes. The AMC thus represents the wide spectrum of the medical specialists of the city. Apart from addressing all issues faced by the medical profession in general and consultants in particular, the association takes up projects affecting public health and conducts awareness campaign for the benefit of the public. It is the largest single (non-branched) medical association of the country and one of the largest single city based medical associations of the country. Following the floods of July 2005 and the train blasts on 11th July 2006 in Mumbai, we doctors realized how unprepared our city is for handling disasters - both Natural and Manmade. We therefore initiated the "First Responder Workshops" for the general public in and around Mumbai. In this program we give a lecture demonstration, which includes CPR, and the layperson audience is invited to have a hands-on experience. We also conduct hands-on training courses in CPR for the general public. We have organized over 200 such workshops in the last one year alone. Doctor's day is celebrated in India on 1st July every year and we at AMC celebrate it with a unique blood donation drive where doctors and their families donate blood, which is collected by the State Blood Transfusion Council to be distributed to the public hospitals in Mumbai. The general public utilizes this blood FREE. We feel that the best way to educate people and to remove the myths and misconceptions surrounding blood donation is to set an example by donating blood ourselves. This year we collected over 1400 bottles on the 29th of June. We also had an “Organ Donation Awareness Drive” on the same day at over 20 centres all over Mumbai. This drive increased the public awareness of the urgent need to encourage a Cadaver Organ Donation program in our country. Sir, in the recent past medical establishments have become the targets of various lumpen elements who do not believe in the laws of the land. These incidents involve both public and private hospitals and all levels of staff, right from the watchmen, ward boys to resident doctors and consultants have been the victims of these unscrupulous elements. We have brought this to your notice during meetings earlier and in the year 2006, you had given us a video recorded message, where you had kindly assured us that you would take up the issue of safety of medical staff, wherein you would make these offences non bailable. In this regard we appreciate your recent announcement in Pune, on June 18th, that a special ordinance to protect doctors, paramedical staff & Medical Establishments would come into effect in 15 days. A provision for 3 years imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 50,000 would be made and twice the amount of damages incurred (of any kind) would be recovered from the offender. This , respected Sir, is a very welcome step in the right direction , as this would make all healthcare establishments feel safe , and would deter those who have been taking advantage of the current laws and causing an atmosphere of fear in the medical community. Maharashtra has always been on the forefront of healthcare and healthcare reforms and we are sure this progressive step will be followed by various other states in the country. Sir, we would like to assure you that this ordinance will go a long way in reinforcing the unmet need of the healthcare community in Maharashtra. Yours sincerely, Dr Anand Parihar Dr Lalit Kapoor Dr Rajeev WalavalkarPresident Managing Trustee Hon Secretary
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