The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules 2000

In one line

Eight rules and a rule 5A, made under the Environment (Protection) Act in February 2000 and amended four times since.

In exam wording: the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules 2000 were notified by S.O. 123(E) of 14 February 2000 in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (ii) of sub-section (2) of section 3, sub-section (1) and clause (b) of sub-section (2) of section 6 and section 25 of the Environment (Protection) Act 1986, read with rule 5 of the Environment (Protection) Rules 1986, for the regulation and control of noise producing and generating sources; rule 1 provides for the short title and commencement and rule 2 for the definitions.

Rule 1: title and commencement

They may be called the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000, and they came into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette, which was 14 February 2000.

The enabling provisions, and why the recital is worth reading

The Rules recite four sources of power, and the combination is instructive.

• Section 3(2)(ii) of the Environment (Protection) Act: planning and execution of a nation-wide programme for the prevention, control and abatement of environmental pollution.
• Section 6(1) and (2)(b): the rule-making power, and specifically the maximum allowable limits of concentration of environmental pollutants including noise for different areas.
• Section 25: the general rule-making power for carrying out the purposes of the Act.
• Rule 5 of the Environment (Protection) Rules 1986: prohibitions and restrictions on the location of industries and the carrying on of processes and operations in different areas.

The presence of section 6(2)(b) in that list is the whole answer to why these rules are made under this Act. It is the one provision in the Indian statute book that names noise as something rules may fix limits for, and the previous chapter explains why the Air Act, which makes noise a pollutant, could not carry them.

Rule 2: the definitions, and what each does

(a) "Act" means the Environment (Protection) Act 1986. So every reference in the Rules to penalties under the Act is a reference to that Act's penal provisions, which since 1 April 2024 are penalties rather than offences.

(b) "area/zone" means all areas falling in either of the four categories given in the Schedule: industrial, commercial, residential and silence.

(c) "authority", substituted in November 2000, means and includes any authority or officer authorised by the Central or State Government in accordance with the laws in force, and includes a District Magistrate, a Police Commissioner, or any other officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police designated for the maintenance of the ambient air quality standards in respect of noise.