SC refuses to entertain fresh PIL on rising air pollution

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to entertain a fresh PIL filed by holistic health coach Luke Christopher Coutinho seeking its intervention to tackle a "persistent and systemic failure" in addressing the country's rising air pollution levels.

A Bench led by CJI BR Gavai, however, allowed Coutinho to withdraw his PIL and file an intervention application in a pending case filed by environmentalist MC Mehta on the issue scheduled to be heard on Wednesday.

In his PIL filed last month, Coutinho contended that air pollution levels in India have assumed proportions of a “public health emergency”, severely impacting citizens in both rural and urban areas.

It violated citizens' fundamental right to health – which is a part of right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution; Coutinho urged the top court to declare air pollution a national public health emergency and frame a time-bound national action plan.

“In Delhi alone, 2.2 million schoolchildren have already suffered irreversible lung damage, as confirmed by government and medical studies,” the PIL stated.

The petition sought immediate curbs on stubble burning and strict enforcement of industrial emission norms with real-time monitoring and public disclosure. It also sought incentives and sustainable alternatives for farmers and phasing out high-emitting vehicles and promoting e-mobility and public transport.

"The National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), launched in 2019 with the target of reducing particulate matter by 20–30 percent by 2024 (subsequently extended to 40 percent by 2026), has not met its modest objectives. As of July 2025, official data reveals that only 25 of the 130 designated cities have achieved a 40 per cent reduction in PM₁₀ levels from the 2017 baseline, while 25 other cities have in fact seen an increase," it said, adding similar violations were there in Kolkata and Lucknow.

The PIL sought a direction to make NCAP targets binding with "statutory force, including clear timelines, measurable indicators, and enforceable penalties for non-compliance".

Terming air quality monitoring systems as “inadequate”, it demanded setting up a National Task Force on Air Quality and Public Health chaired by an independent environmental health expert.