The Delhi High Court has dismissed a plea filed by a senior scientist seeking permission to work from home due to hazardous air quality at his office premises, holding that the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) does not create an enforceable personal right for individual employees.
Justice Sachin Datta, in an order dated December 9, rejected the contention of the petitioner that he was entitled to work from home under GRAP guidelines. The court said a plain reading of the GRAP framework shows that it places a discretionary, and not mandatory, obligation on the Central government to decide whether its employees should be allowed to work from home.
“The objective behind the implementation of GRAP cannot be construed as to create an enforceable personal right upon individual employees,” the court observed. “It rather confers an obligation upon institutions, authorities and citizens to adhere to and support, as far as practicable and feasible, the implementation of the pollution-mitigating solutions stipulated thereunder.”
The petitioner, a Scientist-E with the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), an organisation funded by the Central government, had approached the court citing hazardous air quality and respiratory issues. He said his doctor had advised him to avoid exposure to dust and smoke and sought permission to work from home until the office authorities could certify that indoor air quality was within permissible limits.
He also sought directions for immediate compliance with all GRAP orders issued by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) at his office premises, along with an inspection by competent authorities.
Rejecting these pleas, the court said there was no occasion to issue a writ of mandamus that would effectively alter applicable service conditions under the guise of enforcing GRAP compliance. It held that the petition lacked merit and dismissed it.
However, taking note of the medical concerns raised, the court said that if the petitioner’s health condition so warrants, he would be at liberty to request his employer for a transfer outside Delhi. The employer, the court added, should make an endeavour to favourably consider such a request.
The ruling clarifies that while GRAP measures are aimed at mitigating air pollution, they do not automatically entitle individual government employees to demand work-from-home arrangements as a matter of right.
