Yogi govt removes 11,000 loudspeakers from religious sites in UP; highest from Lucknow

Nearly 11,000 unauthorised loudspeakers were removed from religious places and the volume of the other 35,000 was set to permissible limits across Uttar Pradesh after a government order, according to the information provided by the police department.

Under this exercise, a total of 10,923 loudspeakers were removed and the volume of 35,221 loudspeakers was set within permissible limits till Wednesday evening.

The maximum loudspeakers were removed from the Lucknow zone (2,395), followed by Gorakhpur (1,788), Varanasi (1,366), Meerut (1,204), Prayagraj (1,172) and Bareilly (1070).

In terms of minimising the volume of loudspeakers, the Lucknow zone tops the list with action being taken against 7,397 loudspeakers, followed by Bareilly (6,257), Meerut (5,976), Gorakhpur (5561) and Varanasi (2,417).

'Drive To Remove Unauthorised Speakers Got Good Response,' Says Top Cop

Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar told Republic Media Network that drive against unauthorised loudspeakers and high-decibel loudspeakers have received a good response.

"We are following the high court which has set the specific decibel for loudspeakers. The order regarding this has been sent to district administrations. A committee has been formed to look after this. We are also talking to religious leaders as most of the loudspeakers are mounted at religious places. The drive has received a positive response," Kumar told Republic TV.

The action came after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, during a review meeting on law and order with senior officials last week, said that people have the freedom to follow their religious practices as per their faith.

"Though microphones can be used, it should be ensured that the sound does not come out of any premises. People should not face any problem," he had said.

The state home department has sought a compliance report from the district administrations over the removal of loudspeakers at religious places by April 29.