Supreme Court tells air quality panel to submit action plan on tackling pollution in Delhi

The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Commission for Air Quality Management to submit an affidavit with the action plan to prevent the air pollution from worsening in Delhi, reported Live Law.

A bench of Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran issued the direction after it was told that most air quality monitoring stations in the national capital remained closed during Diwali, according to Bar and Bench.

Advocate Aparajita Singh, amicus curiae in a case pertaining to air pollution in the National Capital Region, requested a report from the Commission for Air Quality Management on the current air pollution status.

The commission is a statutory body established in 2020 to address the air pollution in the National Capital Region and the adjoining areas.

“Out of 37 in Delhi, only nine monitoring systems were functioning during Diwali,” Bar and Bench quoted Sinha as telling the court.

Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati told the bench that a report would be filed, The Hindu reported.

Air quality deteriorates sharply in the winter months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. Stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, along with the lighting of firecrackers, vehicular pollution, falling temperatures, decreased wind speeds and emissions from industries and coal-fired plants contribute to the problem.

On October 15, the Supreme Court permitted the sale and use of green firecrackers in the Delhi-National...

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