The party's over: Judges tells India to keep the noise down

Firecrackers are a great favourite in India. The national love affair with loud noise reaches its apogee at the annual diwali festival in autumn. It is supposed to be the festival of light, but it is really a festival of noise. Everybody sets off a barrage of bangers and louder fireworks. In the cities, it sounds as if the place is under a military assault, and the aftermath leaves thick clouds of black smoke.

The attachment to firecrackerscould be hardest to break. "I welcome the banning of horns and loudspeakers at night," Sudhir Vyas, a Delhi resident, said. "However, [fire]crackers are only burst during celebrations and people like to burst them at night only."

Reena Kohli, a student, said: "This is a good decision. I am happy the courts are addressing people's issues rather than going after publicity-earning cases."

Every village in India has some festival that is celebrated by carting out huge loudspeakers that blast music late into the night. And Indian weddings come complete with a sonic barrage from musicians whose enthusiasm often outweighs their playing skills.

However, Indian health experts say the extraordinary levels of noise pollution are a big cause of heart attacks and other stress-related illnesses.

The Supreme Court has acted after a public interest lawsuit calling for a ban on noise late at night. The lawsuit highlighted the case of a 13-year-old rape victim whose cries for help could not be heard over the music. She later set herself on fire and burnt to death.

The Supreme Court has asked the federal government to set limits on noise at night, and to restrict the use of loudspeakers by day. It even suggested that chapters on the dangers of noise pollution should be included in school textbooks.

But it remains to be seen whether the court ruling will have any effect. The Supreme Court has banned smoking in public, but you will still see Indians drawing on bidis - foul-smelling, local cigarettes that are wrapped in leaves - on the streets of any city.