New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday told the Centre to come up with a “long-term strategy” to tackle Delhi-NCR’s recurring air pollution crisis.
A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) B.R. Gavai directed the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and the Delhi government to file a detailed plan, making it clear that the national Capital cannot continue to rely on short-term responses every winter.
“You can give suggestions, but they cannot be for two days, one week, or three weeks. We need a long-bridge solution so this problem reduces gradually every year,” the Bench, also comprising Justices K. Vinod Chandran and N.V. Anjaria, told Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati.
During the hearing, the apex court remarked that it was not inclined to impose “extreme or knee-jerk measures” such as a year-round ban on construction, adding that such directions would severely hit livelihoods.
“We do not have the expertise to decide what activities should be stopped completely. A large chunk of the population depends on these activities. We cannot look only at one side,” the CJI Gavai-led Bench said.
Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for the intervenors, urged the top court to adopt emergency measures, saying: “Three out of ten deaths in Delhi are due to air pollution. A PM2.5 particle entering my child’s lungs will never leave. This requires very harsh steps.”
Sankaranarayanan underscored the need to trigger GRAP at much lower AQI levels and to push for curbs on construction.
However, the CJI Gavai-led Bench reiterated that a blanket shutdown would bring the city to “a complete standstill”.
“Then even courts will have to stop,” the apex court remarked, adding that the judiciary would not issue “bold directives” without expert-backed solutions.
Posting the matter for hearing on November 19, the Supreme Court also sought an affidavit from the Delhi government on the nature and efficiency of AQI monitoring equipment, following media reports of water sprinkling near monitoring stations.
“Please bring it the day after tomorrow,” the CJI Gavai-led Bench directed.
(IANS)
