UNEP report says Moradabad is world’s 2nd nosiest city: Wrong says official

New Delhi, Mar 29: A report by the United Nations Environment Programme said that millions across the world may be exposed to the risk of hearing loss. Three cities in South Asia were in the top slot of this list-Dhaka, Moradabad and Islamabad.

However an official from Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh said that the report is wrong. There are no sensors installed by (UNEP) to measure such data here... neither have we received any info about such monitoring," Vikas Mishra, Pollution Control Board, Moradabad, told ANI.

The report was compiled from various published studies that used various methodologies. "The latest 2018 WHO guidelines established a health-protective recommendation for road traffic noise levels of 53 dB (decibel) based on the Lden indicator, an average noise level during day, evening and night that differs from the LAeq indicator," the report said.

"Two 15-year-long studies of long-term residents of Toronto found that exposure to road traffic noise elevated risks for acute myocardial infarction and congestive heart failure, and increased the incidence of diabetes mellitus by 8 per cent and hypertension by 2 per cent," the report also added.