Team Herald
PANJIM: Thundering music, nightlong revelry, and disturbed citizenry – Narakasur night saw effigy makers turn up the decibel across Goa even as the Goa Human Rights Commission (GHRC) stepped in to turn down the loud music in St Inez, Panjim, after a complaint from a local resident.
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Historian Sanjeev Sardesai, who had a sleepless night thanks to the loud music played by Narakasur organisers at Dona Paula, remarked, “Narakasur got an extended life and in our area the effigy was burnt at 7.45 am on Diwali day. The music was so loud that it rattled the windows of my flat.”
Sardesai added that the burning of effigies on roads damaged the tarmac and often left debris that could lead to punctures and suggested that the effigy makers must be made to clean up the roads the next day.
Not too far away from Dona Paula, pulsating music made life difficult for citizens in the Tonca-St Inez stretch.
Goa RTI Forum joint secretary Sandeep Heble said, “I was walking from Tonca to St Inez and I could feel my heart palpitating. Loud music and bright lights, drinking in public, road blockades – all of this causes widespread inconvenience.”
“A public interest litigation (PIL) is required to curb the violations done in the name of tradition. This needs to stop,” Heble said, demanding stringent action against those using laser lights, as it caused severe eye strain.
St Inez resident Thomas Henry D’Souza had approached GHRC to have the sound system of local revellers shifted 20 metres away from his flat for the third year running.
“I have been approaching GHRC every year since 2022 with a request not to allow loudspeakers below my flat since my wife and I suffer from serious ailments. My wife has suffered a stroke earlier and the loud music could cause her a second, fatal stroke.”
According to D’Souza, he had been branded “communal” on social media because of his protests. “But I am agnostic. I only wanted to protect my wife,” he said.
Elsewhere in Assagao, Bardez, residents complained about the loud music playing in their area on Diwali eve.
“The music played till 7 the next morning and rattled the window panes of our house, which is located 150 metres away from the revelry,” said one villager. Another villager pointed out that the music made life difficult for senior citizens.
Panjim PI Vijaykumar Chodankar said, “We have ensured that music was stopped at midnight. We did not allow anybody to play music after midnight in our jurisdiction.”
Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) Chairman Mahesh Patil said, “Noise pollution is not in our domain. It is for the police to act. The air quality index in Goa was below 100, which means that the air quality was not bad. We have not received any air pollution complaint on Diwali eve.”
