Chalk out plan to check pollution

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 6

The Supreme Court on Monday asked the governments of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA) to chalk out a comprehensive plan to check air pollution in the Capital.

A bench headed by Justice Madan B Lokur asked them to hold a meeting in two weeks to prepare an action plan and file a report by March 6.

It asked the Centre to consider banning the use of fuels high in sulphur content-- furnace oil and pet coke -- by industries in NCR.

The court ordered the governments of National Capital Region (NCR) with EPCA and CPCB to hold the meeting after it came to light that an air pollution action plan was brought in 2013 but nothing happened thereafter.

During the hearing, the Centre took a dig at the Delhi Government, saying it had promised cleaning by vacuum cleaners but not much had happened.

The bench said it can’t be that if they the city government was not doing anything; the Central government too shouldn’t act.

The Centre told the court that the work of installing air quality monitoring units in the NCR would be completed by May 31. The court clarified that the time limit should be exceeded as it would not extend the deadline.

Referring to the 2010 report of Boston Institute, the court said air pollution killed eight people every day in Delhi. Every third child in Delhi was suffering from some sort of lung problem, it said citing a 2008 EPCA report.