NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has asked the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to file an affidavit detailing the measures it had implemented earlier and the steps it proposes to take in future to prevent deteriorating of air pollution in Delhi-NCR.
On Monday, a two-judge bench of CJI B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran passed the order during the hearing of a PIL, which sought appropriate directions to control air pollution in Delhi and adjoining areas, particularly after Diwali.
The bench expressed dissatisfaction when it was told that several air monitoring stations remained non-functional during Diwali. “If the monitoring stations are not even functioning, we don’t even know when to implement GRAP… Out of 37 monitoring stations, only nine were functioning continuously on the day of Diwali,” senior advocate Aparajita Singh, amicus curiae in the case, said. The SC sought clarity on the operational status of the monitoring systems.
The CAQM’s counsel told the court that a report had already been filed on the previous date of hearing but it could not be considered due to paucity of time. Singh suggested that a fresh affidavit should be submitted, addressing both the issues of malfunctioning of monitoring systems and the planned measures stemming pollution.
In its last hearing on October 15, the SC had permitted the sale of green crackers from October 18-20 keeping in view Diwali.