The Supreme Court on Thursday said the deteriorating air quality in Delhi–National Capital Region demands continuous oversight, as it agreed to take up a plea on the issue on December 3.
A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, sitting with Justice Joymalya Bagchi, noted submissions by senior advocate Aparajita Singh, who is assisting the court as amicus curiae in the ongoing air pollution matter. Singh told the bench that Delhi-NCR was facing an “alarming situation” and that it had become a “health emergency”.
Responding to the concerns, the Chief Justice observed that courts alone cannot resolve the crisis. “What magic wand can a judicial forum exercise? I know this is hazardous for Delhi-NCR. We all know the problem. The issue is what is the solution. We need to identify reasons and … the solutions can be given by the domain experts only. We hope and expect that long term solutions are found,” he said.
The bench said it would examine what committees or mechanisms the government has already constituted and emphasised the need for ongoing supervision. “Tell me what can we direct? We issue some directions and get to breathe clean air immediately… Then we have to see what the solutions can be in each region. Let us see what the government has constituted in terms of committee. This matter is also listed ceremonial way during the Diwali season and … let us have regular monitoring,” the CJI remarked.
The case last came up on November 19, when the court had asked the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to consider postponing open-air school sports events in Delhi-NCR due to hazardous pollution levels, suggesting they be shifted from November–December to “safer months”.
On that occasion, the court declined to impose year-round restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), the emergency framework that curtails polluting activities during severe conditions. Instead, it stressed the need for long-term and sustainable measures to address the region’s persistent air quality crisis.
