AUGUSTO RODRIGUES
VAGATOR: The Diwali break for the High Court of Bombay at Goa has given venues on the court’s radar the chance to flout sound pollution norms with impunity in and around Anjuna and Vagator.
When O Heraldo visited the popular party belt over the weekend, the noise levels kept pace with the clock – a deafening blast till 10 pm, between 72-84 decibels up to midnight, and getting louder and louder till dawn.
However, locals believe that the respite they got after the high court’s intervention is better than the earlier scenario. “It’s like going from the fire and to the frying pan. This is not the best situation to be in, but it’s much better than our ordeal in the past. We’ve gone from sleepless nights to spasms of sleep,” says Janie Crasto, the mother of differently abled child.
“There was a time when I had to leave my son at home and go with my friends to the police station, begging them to do something to lower the volume, but nobody cared. The court’s intervention proves that our prayers are being answered,” she added.
Five venues – Diaz Pool Club and Bar, Anjuna; Noah, Vagator; Thalassa, Siolim; Bar HiFi, Chapora; and House of Chapora – had faced the highest number of complaints from the public and are under the scanner of the courts.
Though they are yet to stick to the noise levels prescribed by the Supreme Court, the fact that they have turned the volume down somewhat has come as relief for local residents.
Local activists are keeping an eye on the violators and one of them, Jawish Moniz, is irked at the manner Hotel W in Vagator is flouting rules. “I have made calls to the police. I have sent emails to the police and Deputy Collector but no one bothered. They played loud music on November 7, 8 and 9,” he complained, sharing copies of the phone complaints and emails.
A letter was submitted to Anjuna Police station on November 9 around 3.30 am, in which Dr Inacio Fernandes and Desmond Alvares, who has filed a contempt petition in court, mentioned nine venues playing loud music in Ozrant, Vagator. The letter that was accessed by O Heraldo mentions the names of the policemen at the station when the complaints were filed, the time when all the units were visited – from 11.30 pm till 3 am – and requests the police to file an FIR.
“I have provided videos to the police and yet they pretend that nothing is wrong. They think they can ignore the ground reality and keep lying to the High Court. I even went to the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) to get a reading on their noise monitoring systems. The readings showed peak values of 75-85 dB at 3 am. But the police have not taken cognisance,” alleged Alvares.
Roads in Vagator, especially the one in Ozrant and Chapora, were packed after midnight with vehicles moving towards venues from where loud music could be heard. Some restaurants were open well past midnight, with cars parked outside that added to the chaos on the roads. Two policemen were seen moving towards the area where Salud and Dynamo are located after midnight.
Attempts to contact Anjuna Police Inspector proved futile, with no response from the mobile number assigned. “The note given to the High Court by SDPO Sandesh Chodankar seems to be a sham with no response from the numbers,” disclosed Alvares.