CHENNAI: In a pilot project, the Greater Chennai Traffic Police (GCTP) have issued advanced noise cancellation earbuds to 20 traffic police personnel of Nungambakkam police station to combat health risks posed by high-decibel noise in their workplace - the city roads.
Additional Commissioner (Traffic) R Sudhakar distributed the earbuds to the personnel at an event on Friday.
"Traffic police tirelessly regulate traffic at junctions up to eight hours daily enduring relentless noise levels ranging from 90 to 150 dB. Prolonged exposure to such high noise levels not only impacts their health but also elevates stress, hindering their ability to effectively engage with the public," said an official release.
The custom earplug developed by ASTRA with technology imported from American company Starkey is capable of reducing noise levels by up to 25 per cent, and comes with advanced features such as automatic noise reduction, filtering out harmful traffic sounds, and retention of conversational clarity while blocking unwanted noise among others.
With this, GCTP has become the first police force in India to recognise the importance of hearing protection and take steps to address it, according to the city police.
Plans are afoot to extend the distribution of the earplug to all GCTP personnel in the coming days, marking a significant step towards protecting the well-being of traffic officers.