Supreme Court seeks action plan on Delhi-NCR vehicular pollution in 2 weeks

A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana directed the governments to submit plans covering vehicular movement, emission standards and measures to curb polluting vehicles.

In Short

• Govts must explain emission checks, enforcement of PUC certificate rules
• SC wants figures for vehicles inspected and challans issued against violators
• GRAP III halts dust-generating construction, stone crushing and mining activities

The Supreme Court has sought a detailed action plan within two weeks from Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to tackle vehicular pollution in the National Capital Region (NCR).

A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana directed the Delhi government, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Delhi Police’s traffic department and the three state governments to submit plans covering vehicular movement, emission standards and measures to curb polluting vehicles.

The court sought details of the criteria and procedures used to ensure compliance with vehicle emission standards. It also asked how strictly the rules governing Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificates were being enforced.

The bench sought details of action taken against old vehicles and those failing to meet prescribed standards, including the number of vehicles checked and challans issued.

The vehicular pollution matter will next be heard on November 23.

The court’s directions come amid worsening air quality in Delhi-NCR. The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) invoked Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) on Friday, ahead of Diwali.

WHAT GRAP STAGE III RESTRICTS

The revised Stage III framework comprises a 10-point action plan for the NCR, which includes Delhi and parts of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.

One of the major measures is a ban on several dust-generating construction and demolition activities. These include excavation, piling, demolition, brickwork, road construction, major welding operations, painting, polishing and the movement of construction materials on unpaved roads.

Certain construction activities linked to essential infrastructure projects are permitted, subject to pollution-control norms. These include railway and metro projects, airports, hospitals, national security projects, highways, flyovers, power transmission networks, sewage treatment plants and water supply projects.

The action plan also directs the closure of stone crushers and mining activities across the NCR.

Vehicle restrictions are another key component of Stage III. These cover BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel or older four-wheelers in Delhi and the districts of Gurugram, Faridabad, Sonipat, Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddha Nagar.

In Delhi, restrictions also cover specified BS-IV and older diesel medium goods vehicles registered in the city, as well as the entry of BS-IV and older diesel light and medium goods vehicles registered outside Delhi. The earlier exemption for such goods vehicles carrying essential commodities has been removed.

HYBRID CLASSES, WORK-FROM-HOME OPTION

The Stage III action plan also provides for changes to school and office operations.

The Delhi government and NCR state governments are required to conduct classes for students up to Class V in hybrid mode, combining physical and online classes wherever the online option is feasible. Students and their guardians can choose the online option.

The governments may also decide whether government, municipal and private offices should operate with 50 per cent of staff attending in person and the rest working from home.

- Ends