Cannot close its eyes to the poor air quality in the capital - Delhi HC

Case: Court On Its Own Motion (Air Pollution in Delhi) v Union of India & Ors
Bench: Division bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad

Recently, the Delhi High Court said that it cannot close its eyes to the fact that the air quality has been oscillating between the ‘very poor’ to ‘severe’ category in Delhi.  The bench said it is only due to the recent wind conditions that air quality has marginally improved in the past few days.

The court made the remark in response to the counsel appearing for the 'Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas' statement that it has come up with a plan to deal with the air pollution in the capital.

The bench was hearing a suo motu petition initiated in 2015 regarding air pollution in Delhi.

Earlier, Senior Advocate Kailash Vasdev, Amicus Curiae, informed the bench about the uncontrolled deforestation in the city and the situation of the city's forests. He pointed to several forest areas that have been turned into unauthorized colonies. The only way to deal with the continuous deforestation is to stop these illegal constructions.

Justice Prasad remarked that the Delhi HC cannot close its eyes to these illegal constructions in contradiction of rules and shamefully the same is known to authorities.

The Court directed Kailash Vasdev to file his submissions along with suggestions to deal with the issue.

The case will be heard on February 1, 2023.