Indiscriminate honking has always been a major source of noise pollution on Indian roads. As more automobiles are being continuously added to the roads everyday,  honking levels are also on the rise, and has started infiltrating into our homes. If not stopped right now, it will invade our Fundamental Right to Life and Personal Liberty (Article 21, Constitution of India). The Supreme Court, The National Green Tribunal, and various High Courts of our country has time and again upheld this right of the citizens against any form of noise pollution beyond prescribed limits which is deemed as a criminal offense.

As the major roads are already congested, many 2, 3 and 4 wheeler drivers opt to take shortcuts through minor / residential roads to avoid congestion. This often lead to rise in congestion in these roads which were otherwise being used only by pedestrians and cyclists. These roads generally don't have footpaths and are often not wide enough to accommodate space for passing / overtaking other road users. Yet the habituated honkers honk unnecessarily to demand for right of way. Besides, these roads often have numerous blind turns and intersections. To avoid accidents while over-speeding, the drivers honk continuously with the intent to alert other road users about their approach. Such events occur throughout the day, and even during night hours. This leads to isolated yet extreme events of noise pollution which is hazardous to the health of the residents in the area, and is an infringement on their

• right to sleep, especially during late night and early morning,
• right to privacy and right to be not disturbed,
• right to live in a pollution free environment,
• right to leisure, especially for the elderly,
• right to health, especially for those suffering from ailments and require adequate amount of rest,
• right to education, for students who are attending online classes or otherwise studying at their homes,
• right to livelihood, for individuals who are working from / at home and the nature of their job requires adequate levels of peace and concentration.

While sudden bursts of intermittent horns in an otherwise peaceful area or at night time in residential area is equivalent to illegal firecrackers bursting; continuous exposure to loud horns multiple times throughout the day has severe harmful effects on human body as well as on the human mind; and this is already well established in the scientific and medical community, and has been recognized by our judiciary in multiple occasions. In fact, laws are already in place to restrict needless honking, honking in residential areas or during night hours, viz.

1. The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000
2. Motor Vehicle (Driving) Regulations, 2017
3. THE MOTOR VEHICLES (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2019

The contention is that, we may not be able to control horns on busy roads, but at least our homes should be free from noise pollution caused by honking vehicles or other vehicular noises (such as modified exhausts etc). A person residing inside his/her home and not causing any trouble to the road users has every right not to be disturbed by the road users in any form.

Since we already have sufficient laws and regulations to protect citizens from noise pollution, all is required is compliance enforced by the law enforcement authorities. This is all we want.

The solution can simply start by installing "Horn Prohibited" signs or similar in minor / residential roads where such events occur regularly. This will act as a constant reminder and will help check indiscriminate honkers to a great extent. In addition to this, the authorities should conduct awareness drives in the concerned areas. If the situation still doesn't come under control, the authorities should set up noise monitoring equipment and CCTV cameras to track the violators in such areas. If installation of such noise monitoring equipment is not feasible or require weeks or months of time to set it up, the citizens should be able to report repeated offenders in their area to the authorities by providing the vehicle license plate numbers which may be accompanied by audio-visual evidence captured through their personal devices, such as their personal cameras and / or mobile phones. Until a noise complaint portal is setup, the citizens should be able to lodge their complaints through phone calls, emails and other social media channels such as Whatsapp, Twitter and others. Upon receiving the complaint, the authorities should investigate, scrutinize the evidence, and take appropriate action against the violator immediately in a time bound fashion and at max within 3 days of lodging the complaint.

It is important that action taken by the authorities against the honkers is in a time bound fashion; because noise pollution is hazardous to health, and greater the delay the greater would be its impact on a citizen's health, which is in violation to his / her fundamental rights: justice delayed is justice denied.

Charity begins at home. If you are a vehicle owner, sign this petition to pledge not to honk unnecessarily. If you care for your elderly parents' health, sign this petition. If you care for your young children's development, sign this petition. If you do not want to suffer from cardiovascular diseases and hearing loss, sign this petition. If you have ever been irritated by a honking vehicle, sign this petition. If you are a nature lover, and want to protect our environment, sign this petition. If you are a law abiding citizen, sign this petition. If you want to uphold and protect your fundamental right to life and personal liberty, sign this petition. If you are an Indian, sign this petition.

Lets make India noise pollution free, because #TogetherWeCan.

P.C. Telegraph India - Morning lessons against honking