NEW DELHI: The Capital’s third runway may have come as a boon for air passengers, but it is also giving residents of colonies around the airport sleepless nights.
Himani Yadav, a resident of Dwarka sector 12, says, “With nearly 15 planes landing every hour, my top-floor apartment feels like a war zone. I am glad I live here on rent. Dwarka was a quiet place before the runway came up.”
A sprawling house complex of some 1,00,000 apartments, Dwarka is among the country’s biggest government-regulated housing project. Mahipalpur is the worst hit as it directly faces the new runway.
Rohit Sherawat, a resident says, “The noise is unbearable. I have a paying guest now, but I doubt I will get more. Few would like to stay here because of the high-decibel level. After all, people have to go to office and who can do without proper sleep?”
The problem doesn’t end here. One plane lands every three minutes on the new
runway, which means almost 480 planes can land in 24 hours. The biggest issue with the new runway is that it is here to stay. But so are the colonies and its residents. Colonies like Shankar Vihar, a residential complex for military officers, which is at an arm’s length from the old runway, have witnessed a significant escalation in noise level.
Unable to take the harassment, some residents have moved court. Residents’ welfare associations in the area and the Senior Citizens’ Welfare Association have lodged an FIR and filed a case in the high court. An NGO, Chetna, has launched a signature campaign and has written to various authorities.
Siddharth Verma, a resident, says, “We had got used to the old runway, but this new runway makes a racket. This colony resembles a military base. On the old runway, only one plane could land and take off. But that’s not the case now.”
Anjali Paul, a Vasant Kunj resident, says: “The planes create so much noise that when I am playing a song on my laptop, I can hear nothing.”
Even Five star hotels like Uppal Orchids, which is near the highway, are feeling the pinch. Anjana Chug, a guest at a wedding held at the Uppal Orchids, says, “I went for this wedding and all that I could hear was the sound of planes.”
An official of the GMR project had a different take on the problem. “The new runway is a high-class project. Not only is it one of the biggest runways in Asia, but it also has the capacity to land big aircrafts like the Airbus 380.”
When questioned about the high noise level, he says, “Only the apartments on the top floor are disturbed by the noise.”
Real Estate dealer Satish Sherawat says interest in properties near the airport has gone down ever since the new runway has come up. “Clients who have elderly or sick family members or those with children prefer quite neighbourhoods. So, this area is of no
interest to them.”
Comments