The Supreme Court on Wednesday told the governments of Haryana and Punjab to file status reports on the steps taken to curb stubble burning, which is one of the major causes of air pollution in northern India in winter months.
The direction comes amid Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) Stage-III restrictions being implemented in Noida, which will now lead to curbs on construction activities as well as vehicular movement.
A bench of Chief Justice of India B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran ordered, "We direct the state of Punjab and Haryana to file a report on what steps are being taken to curb stubble burning."
An advocate involved with the case told the Supreme Court bench that while GRAP-III curbs have been imposed in Delhi, the current condition calls for the imposition of GRAP-IV.
Construction was being carried out within the Supreme Court premises itself while Air Quality Index (AQI) has crossed 450 in some parts of Delhi, the counsel pointed out to the court, as per an ANI report.
Another advocate pointed out the poor functioning of air monitoring stations, claiming that there is a significant problem and that the data being uploaded is inaccurate.
Stubble burning continues
The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) in the National Capital Region has earlier issued a notice to Vivek Bharti, the Fatehabad Deputy Commissioner, for non-compliance with directives aimed towards preventing stubble burning in Haryana.
The commission, in a notice issued on 10 November, raised concerns over stubble burning continuing in Fatehabad despite repeated directions and review meetings.
Fatehabad recorded 59 cases of stubble burning from 15 September to 9 November. Among these, 28 incidents occurred on 8-9 November alone.
When it comes to combined cases of stubble burning in the two states, the Supreme Court was told that there were a combined 4,360 cases in the two states between 15 September to 10 November.
In a 46-page affidavit submitted to the apex court by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) detailing steps it has taken to curb air pollution in Delhi-NCR, the commission pointed out that stubble burning continues to be a matter of "serious concern".
"The Commission has been maintaining a close watch on the number of active fire counts detected through satellite monitoring and has been engaging with the state governments on a daily basis to ensure immediate remedial and preventive actions," it said.