New Delhis intense air pollution persisted Thursday, with monitoring stations reporting “very poor” air quality across the national capital region as per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).Levels of dangerous particulate matter remained several times above World Health Organization safety guidelines. The CPCB recorded Air Quality Index readings of 334 at Delhi Airport, 343 in Moti Bagh and 405 in Punjabi Bagh as of Thursday morning. All fall into the hazardous “very poor” classification#WATCH | Delhi: The Air Quality Index (AQI) remains in the Very Poor category in the National Capital as per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).(Drone visuals from AIIMS, shot at 7:30 am) pic.twitter.com/c83K3kiNoL— ANI (@ANI) December 14, 2023Top Indian court demands swift actionThe air quality crisis, returning each winter, has drawn interventions from Indias Supreme Court. “Let us at least make an endeavour for the next winter to be a little better,” a bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia said on Wednesday while underscoring the need for judicial oversight and regional cooperationA key culprit driving the smog - crop residue burning by farmers in neighbouring agrarian states like Punjab and Haryana - “must stop, Kaul asserted. But the court acknowledged such fires continue unabated for now even after several action plan meetings between state administrators.Possibly, this matter needs continuous monitoring. What happens is that when the problem arises, we suddenly take it up. The court must monitor it for some time, the bench observed.Attorney General R. Venkataramani submitted the central governments own pollution mitigation plans to the court.“There is something to be done by Punjab, something to be done by Haryana, something to be done by Delhi and something to be done by different ministries,” the court observed in calling for collaborative action by various jurisdictions.Justices have asked for progress reports from all relevant states within two months as the court monitors anti-pollution efforts - an unusual move signalling the situations severe public health impacts. Previous enforcements to curb pollutionPrevious enforcement of offenders has also lacked bite. While Punjab has issued Rs 2 crore in environmental fines over illegal crop burning, just 53 per cent has been recovered so far. Recoveries must be speeded up, the court says.With air quality expected to worsen heading into winter, the Supreme Court will revisit the case again on February 27th as it balances environmental stewardship with economic realities facing farmers. “The problem arises, we suddenly take it up. The court must monitor it for some time, the bench noted in charting a more proactive role.
