Honking horns contribute a lot to the noise pollution and India must surely be at the very top in the world in contributing to noise pol¬lution arising out of excessive honking. The Mumbai traffic police, after observing April 7 as ‘No Honking Day’, are reportedly planning to make that a permanent campaign in the hope that the drivers learn to be more considerate but there was hardly any noticeable difference despite the police imposing.
Noise pollution can lead to a lot of serious health problems like heart attack and other stress related illnesses, and hearing defects. A chase by a horn-happy driver can be a very annoying experience or a motorist, even for those who see nothing wrong in frequent recourse to horn.
Of course, in all other cities and towns across the country nobody gave a damn about the ‘No Honking’ drive by the Mumbai traffic police. The authority in the capital are not interested in taking initiatives to end the burgeoning road chaos while taking shelter behind standard excuses, one of which is their alleged preoccupation with VIP safety. As the city with the most number of VIPs, Delhi enjoys immunity from enforcing traffic laws.
About three years ago the highest court in the capital had banned a number of activities that contribute to noise pollution and unauthorized loud honking by vehicles was one of them. 99 percent of Indians who hold a valid driving licence would fail the driving test in any western country. Apart from the average Indian’s indifference towards observing all the driving norms and etiquettes (as necessary as the rules) his or her uncontrollable urge to drive with one hand on the horn button would disqualify the Indian in any foreign country.
The horn is an instrument that is meant to alert the people of any danger, a forewarning to erratic drivers and jaywalkers alike. It cannot be disputed that quite a few accidents, minor and major, are averted everyday by the timely sounding of the horn. Even in the civilized countries they do use horn. It may be rare though-to attract attention or express annoyance. The Indian driver uses the horn for the same reasons-to attract attention and issue alert notice though also with increasing frequency as an expression of road rage. However, the fact remains that in India sounding the horn has become an accepted rule and, it is not seen as some-thing undesirable, much less unlawful or uncivilized.
At traffic junctions an average driver would start honking even before the light has turned amber from red. A traffic jam does not lessen his or her impulsive urge to press the horn button. And the rage of the impatient driver reaches the zenith if there is a slow-moving vehicle or a human being in front of him or her. The heterogeneous nature of traffic might provide some justification to use the horn, but it still does not justify its compulsive and excessive usage. The slow-moving vehicle will move aside as soon as it is possible to do so and that may take less than a minute. But no, the driver behind must start blaring the horn as if to ask why the wretched fellow with his crawling machine was on the road.