Supreme Court Expands Focus On Air Pollution, Calls For Pan-India List Of Worst-Affected Cities

Referring to pollution as a "pan-India" issue, the Supreme Court on Monday instructed the government to provide a list of cities with major pollution problems.

The court also suggested that a body similar to the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), which addresses air quality issues in Delhi-NCR, should be established in all states.

"Give a list of other major cities with the problem of air pollution and whether, for those cities, some machinery can be created. We will expand this issue pan-India. We should not give a wrong signal that sitting in the Supreme Court we are only dealing with air pollution in Delhi," said a bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Manmohan.

The court's direction followed a report from one of the court commissioners who stated that restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in Delhi were ineffective because anti-pollution measures were not being implemented in cities outside the National Capital Region (NCR).

"Whatever is banned in NCR is going on in all cities outside it. Where the border of NCR ends, the activities are happening. Crop burning is becoming an issue in other states also," the court commissioner explained.

In response, the Supreme Court instructed all intervenors and experts to offer suggestions to the amicus curiae. "We will have to expand the scope of the PIL to other states and areas outside NCR due to rising pollution," the court remarked.

The Supreme Court has been overseeing the air pollution crisis in Delhi-NCR since November 18. With pollution levels in Delhi reaching the "severe" category last month, the court has stated that it will issue detailed instructions on implementing the policy developed by the CAQM to tackle air pollution.

On Monday, amid a sharp decline in air quality, the CAQM reintroduced restrictive measures under GRAP-3. This includes moving classes up to Class V in schools and colleges to hybrid mode and banning the operation of non-essential diesel-powered goods vehicles.