Karachiites are exposed to high levels of noise much beyond safe limits, often above 85 to 110 decibels, either at frequent intervals or for a long stretch of time between four to ten hours. This was stated at a noise pollution seminar conducted by the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) in 2005.
Measures for reducing noise were also discussed by medical experts including ENT experts, environmentalists, researchers, SSP Traffic and the president of the bus owner's association. Seven years on, the noise level in Karachi is still beyond safe limits. The reason Karachi continues to be a noisy city is that all the concerned persons mentioned above ignore, in fact condone, several noise-makers such as the sirens of the police vans, and security police cars clearing the way for VIPs, the misuse of Masjid loudspeakers, the political party songs played loud during protest meetings and street processions, the hate speeches screamed on megaphones by militant and fanatical groups.
Criticism is limited to noise-makers such as the autorickshaws, the clarion horn of buses, the rat-a-tat of motorcycles. It is safe to criticise such things. The people who drive these vehicles are not socially or politically important. So they get picked on from time to time whenever there is a traffic safety week or some nonsensical campaign of environmentalists.
When experts talk about the effect of high level of noise in Karachi they use cliché arguments. One of the most ridiculous, therefore ineffective, is scare-mongering by the medical experts. For instance, at the 2005 seminar on noise pollution conducted by the PMA, it was unanimously acknowledged by medical professionals that the high level of noise was causing growing incidence of hearing impairment, leading to lack of tolerance, irritation and frequent bouts of headaches.
Tibet Centre, Merewether Tower and parts of Saddar have the highest levels of noise, ranging between 90 and 120 decibels. The people living and working in this area should be deaf by now, but this has not happened. Do the experts really know how many people have hearing problem? They do not. There has been no survey in the area to note hearing impairment. The medics have simply taken the information out of some medical journal, their opinion is scholastic not realistic.
The lack of tolerance in the nature of Karachiites, is not due to noise. The culprit is rage against frequent breakdown of utility services, particularly electricity supply which sets in motion a thousand ills, one of which is water shortage because the pumps do not work, the drain of power from the UPS which means lack of sleep, inability to study at night and missing an episode in one's favourite TV drama. All such things make the public intolerant of the government, the officials of utility services. Anger, road rage and, for all you know, domestic violence may also be caused by intolerance.
Karachiites love noise which they call music. We turn on the volume of the car's stereo system. Even buses, rickshaws and motorcycles have speakers that increase the volume of the sound of so-called music. This is not, however, a sign of uncivilised behaviour. The modern sound of music is loud, high-pitched, ear-splitting. Teenagers shut the door of their bedroom in order to increase the sound level - or noise level of heavy metal and rock bands. A generation has grown up listening to music in this way and yet none of them has hearing impairment.
As for frequent headaches, the real culprit is political and fanatical opinion, financial worries as we irresistibly slide down towards dire poverty, inflation, artificial shortage of foods, TV talk shows, cost of education, shortage of textbooks, teacher's strikes, students' strikes and so forth. It hardly makes a difference whether these headaches are caused by loud noisy expressions of protest or silently endured. I do not dispute the medic's claim that high levels of noise can cause headaches, but at the same time I do not believe noise is the prime cause of headaches among Karachiites.
It is astonishing that there is a law forbidding the use of loudspeakers in Masjids for anything other than the call to prayer. Try enforcing this law. Another astonishing law is that the whole of Karachi is a noise-free zone. Forget traffic noise for a moment to note the greatest noise-makers these days, the political and fanatical noise of megaphones during public meetings and processions. Try preventing it. Nobody is foolhardy to do so because it would mean signing their own death warrant.
None of the anti-noise champions ever mention the disorientation of drivers caused by the sudden siren sounded by police vans and security cars clearing the way for the cars of VIPs. Because this peculiar siren manages to clear a path, motorcyclists have installed it in their vehicles. Previously they had used the horn sound of motorcars, now whey use siren sounds. Karachiites would not break the law if it was uniformly applied. If exceptions are allowed then, Karachiites being what they are, take advantage to the hilt. That is the practice in this chaotic jungle called Karachi.