After the friction between the judiciary and the state government over silence zones, a three-judge high court bench on Friday upheld the enforcement of deemed silence zones for the time being, saying the Centre's amendment to Noise Pollution Rules that struck down noise restrictions in place for certain neighbourhoods is "unconstitutional" and does not serve "public interest". As per the amendment, powers for notifying silence zones were delegated to the state, and previously deemed silence zones, within 100 meters of schools, hospitals and courts, were not to be identified as such until notified. The court went on to say that since 2003, the consistent view has been that a radius of 100 metre around hospitals, schools and courts comprises silence zones, even if not notified by the authorities. The state had earlier challenged this limit in the apex court but its contention was dismissed. The state, meanwhile, contedned that deemed silence zones would act as guiding factors while re-notifying silence zones as per the amendment.

Source: dna September 02, 2017 01:07 UTC