Bombay High Court
Court On Its Own Motion vs The Secretary, Ministry Of ... on 5 March, 2026
Author: Anil Laxman Pansare
Bench: Anil Laxman Pansare
19-PIL-90-2025 1
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR.
PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION NO. 90 OF 2025
(Dr. Bhupendrakumar K. Wasnik & Ors. Vs. The Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and
Climate Change, New Delhi & Ors.)
WITH PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION NO. 8 OF 2025
(Awantika Chitnavis Vs. State of Maharashtra & Ors.)
WITH SUO MOTU PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION NO. 16 OF 2025
(Court on its own motion Vs. The Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change &
Ors.)
__________________________________________________________________________
Office Notes, Office Memoranda of Coram,
appearances, Court's orders of directions Court's or Judge's orders.
and Registrar's Orders.
PIL No. 90/2025
Mr. B.K. Wasnik, petitioner in-person.
Ms Mugdha Chandurkar i/b Mr. K.N. Shukul, DSGI for
respondent no.1/Union of India.
PIL No. 8/2025
Mr. A.C. Dharmadhikari, Counsel for the petitioner.
Mr. S.M. Ukey, Counsel for respondent no.3.
Mr. S.S. Sanyal, Counsel for respondent nos. 5 and 6.
Mr. Apurv De, Counsel for respondent no.7.
SMPIL No. 16/2025
Mr. Abdul Subhan, Counsel for the petitioner - amicus curiae.
Mr. N.S. Rao, A.G.P. for the respondent/State.
.....
CORAM : ANIL L. PANSARE AND
NIVEDITA P. MEHTA, JJ.
MARCH 5, 2026 Heard for some time. The Registry shall add 'Chief Controller of Explosives, A Block, CGO Complex, Fifth Floor, Seminary Hills, Nagpur' as party respondent in all the PILs.
2] Ms Mugdha Chandurkar i/b Mr. K.N. Shukul, learned DSGI, waives notice for the newly added respondent.
3] Broadly, we will examine the issue under following heads :
19-PIL-90-2025 2I] Noise pollution/air pollution caused by crackers.
II] Noise pollution/air pollution caused by loudspeakers in religious places.
III] Noise pollution/air pollution caused by vehicles.
IV] Noise pollution/air pollution caused by construction equipments and activities.
NOISE POLLUTION BY USE OF SPEAKERS AT RELIGIOUS PLACES 4] As such, the provisions are in place in terms of The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 (for short "Rules of 2000"). Various High Courts and Supreme Court has also issued multiple directions to control noise pollution, but, unfortunately, without fruitful results, in the sense, there is complete lack of implementation, be it a provision of law or directions issued by the Courts.
5] We, therefore, intend to issue directions for a limited area, and also, for limited purpose, and to monitor its implementation. Thereafter, depending on success, we will expand scope of the order.
6] We have gone through the provisions of Rules of 2000 and the judgments on the point involved. Undisputedly, the permissible limit of sound decibel in day time is, at most, 75 dB(A) (Industrial Zone).
7] The first focus is on use of loudspeakers at religious places. Sub-rule (1) of Rule 5 of Rules of 2000 19-PIL-90-2025 3 provides that a loudspeaker or a public address system shall not be used except after obtaining written permission from the authority. The 'authority' is defined under Clause (c) of Rule 2 of the Rules 2000, which includes District Magistrate and Police Commissioner, amongst other Officers.
8] We accordingly direct the District Magistrate and Police Commissioner to issue a public notice in widely circulated newspapers in Nagpur city calling upon all those, who have installed loudspeakers at religious places without permission, to remove the same within seven days from the date of publication of notice. If the loudspeakers/ public address system are not removed within the time stipulated, the authorities shall cause the loudspeakers/public address system removed from the religious places situated in the entire Nagpur city.
9] If a loudspeaker/public address system is installed with prior permission of the authority, the height of the speaker shall be brought down to fifteen feet from the ground. If the height is to be extended above fifteen feet, the authority shall pass a reasoned order to that effect justifying installation of loudspeaker/public address system above the height of fifteen feet. The authorities shall ensure compliance.
10] The loudspeaker must be oriented towards the religious structure and not outside. If it has to be otherwise, the authority shall pass a reasoned order justifying such orientation. The arrangement will achieve balance between right to speech and right to listen or decline to listen. It is well settled that freedom of speech 19-PIL-90-2025 4 and expression guaranteed under Article 19(1)(c) of the Constitution of India include, by necessary implication, freedom not to listen and/or to remain silent.
NOISE POLLUTION BY CRACKERS 11] The Chief Controller of Explosives shall take steps to ensure that maximum output of firecrackers is not above 75 dB(A) or as provided under the Indian Standards of noise of firecrackers, whichever is lower. He shall further take steps to ensure that the firecrackers, having potential to pollute the air quality index, shall not be manufactured.
NOISE POLLUTION BY USE OF MUSIC SYSTEM, POPULARLY KNOWN AS DJ, AND OTHER AMPLIFYING SYSTEM, SO ALSO, USE OF FIRECRACKERS DURING CEREMONIES AT VARIOUS LAWNS 12] The authority, be it a District Magistrate, Police Commissioner or Commissioner of Municipal Corporation, shall verify whether the lawns operative in Nagpur city have been accorded permission as required under law. The authorities may refer to Circular dated 24/11/2016 issued by Maharashtra Pollution Control Board. The authority shall take steps and issue necessary directions to all the lawn owners/marriage hall owners to not permit the parties to use sound system and firecrackers without prior permission of the authority.
13] The issue regarding noise pollution by vehicles, construction activities and other such sources, will be taken up in due course. The parties shall submit suggestions for implementation of the Rules of 2000, and 19-PIL-90-2025 5 the directions issued by various High Courts and Supreme Court.
14] List on 12/3/2026.
15] All concerned shall act on an authenticated/
uploaded copy of order and submit compliance report.
(JUDGE) (JUDGE)
Sumit
Signed by: Mr. Sumit Agrawal
Designation: PS To Honourable Judge
Date: 05/03/2026 19:20:14