The pollution crisis in Delhi-NCR came up for hearing in the Supreme Court on Wednesday. During this period, the courts condemned the governments of Punjab and Haryana. The court said why there are less penalties in pollution cases because it encourages people. At the same time, the court also expressed its dissatisfaction to the CAQM (Commission for Air Quality Management) on the issue of straw burning. The court said why not take direct action against the officials who failed to stop the pollution instead of just issuing notices to them and seeking a reply?
The central government has given two weeks
Expressing serious concern over air pollution, the Supreme Court is understood to have given the central government two weeks to formulate rules and appoint responsible officers under the Environment Protection Act (EPA). The court had strong words, saying that this was not just an illegal case, but also a blatant violation of citizens’ basic rights.
Penalties for burning straw are incomplete
Referring to the stubble burning incidents in Punjab and Haryana, the court said the punitive action in the two states was incomplete. In Punjab, only 483 people were compensated in 1,098 arson cases, while in Haryana, FIRs were registered against only 93 people in 498 arson cases. The court said it was clear that the law was not strictly followed and action should be taken against the responsible officials.
What did the Deputy Attorney General say?
Meanwhile, the Solicitor General assured the court that the rules will be framed within 10 days and the entire system will be implemented. Nonetheless, the court warned the central government that it is time to ensure every citizen’s fundamental right to live in a clean environment. The court said, “This is not just a matter of law enforcement. The question is how the government protects citizens’ rights to live with dignity and a clean environment.” The court criticized the government’s inaction on this issue, saying that due to the delay in implementing the law, violations of environmental regulations People are not punished.
Now this matter is not only about the environment, but also about protecting the rights of every citizen.
What happened to the Supreme Court?
Supreme Court: The Punjab government should inform how much fine has been imposed?
Punjab: Rs 11 lakh was recovered from 417 people.
Supreme Court: How much is each violator being clawed back?
Punjab- Amounts vary by region. Average Rs 2500 to Rs 5000.
Supreme Court: By imposing a nominal fine, you are encouraging people to break the rules and take the law into their own hands.
After this, the Supreme Court asked the central government to consider increasing the fines. Meanwhile, Punjab government counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi told the Supreme Court that 44 cases of stubble burning have been registered so far. The court said that even after three years, our order was not being complied with. In the 44 cases you filed, was any action taken against anyone? Can you tell us how many straw burning incidents have occurred this year?
Punjab Provincial Government’s reply: The Punjab government said 1,510 incidents have been reported so far.
Supreme Court: How many FIRs have been registered here? Punjab Government: 1084 cases registered.
Supreme Court (Condemning Punjab Government): Despite the CAQM-based order issued on June 10, nodal and cluster officers have not been appointed in the state. You didn’t even mention this in your affidavit. Please explain where village nodal officers and cluster officers are appointed? If these officials have been appointed, please tell us what did these officials do? There was no mention of this in your previous affidavit.
Why has no action been taken in 3 years?
Why, the judges asked, was the committee not constituted despite our order for two years? What’s your answer to this? You also impose small fines on people who burn straw! Have you only collected fines from a third of the people so far? The court said why only 470 of the 1,084 people who burned straw were given light penalties? Why not charge fines to 600 people accused of the same crime? Why has no action been taken in 3 years?
Following this, the Supreme Court started questioning the Haryana Chief Secretary…
haryana chief secretary We have designated nodal offices at various levels. Their number exceeds five thousand. We’ve been doing this since 2021.
Supreme Court: How many FIRs have been registered since April?
Haryana Lawyer: 200 cases related to pollution have been registered. 400 large and small straw burning incidents and 32 incidents have been registered.
Government of Haryana: So far, 419 incidents of straw burning have occurred.
Supreme Court: Just now you said 317, now you say 419. The Haryana government is doing an “eyewash” job. FIRs are detrimental to some and fine to others. What kind of pick-and-choose game is this, where you pamper someone and scold someone as you please? The Supreme Court has reprimanded the Haryana chief secretary, saying he is throwing dust in his own eyes.
Court condemns Haryana government
The Supreme Court told the Haryana government that you were deliberately collecting fine under Section 15 so that it could be dismissed later on appeal.
The Haryana government said that we will register an FIR in every case. There used to be 10,000 cases, but we adopted a strict attitude and it has been reduced to 400 cases.
The Supreme Court said it was all nonsense. You have no policy in place. Some people were arrested. But some were released after being fined.
You took no action: Supreme Court
Haryana says this is not the case. Some people are repeat offenders. This means he is a repeat offender. Some people avoid paying fines. We have taken action on both fronts. The Supreme Court said, “We have serious doubts about your assertion.” Questioning the Haryana government’s figures, the Supreme Court said that lower numbers mean you have not recorded them. You took no action. How did this number drop from 10,000 cases to 400?
What did the Punjab Chief Secretary say?
The chief secretary of Punjab said that machines for processing stubble have been provided. Due to their use, the incidence of straw burning has decreased. The Supreme Court said that the Punjab and Haryana governments informed that nodal officers have been appointed. But neither said how many officers they had deployed.
CAQM is also a target of Supreme
A bench of Justice Abhay S Oak, Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Justice Augustine George Masih asked the Council for Air Quality Management (CAQM) why the CAQM did not exercise its Section 15 powers to fix compensation. Compensation needs to be reconsidered. The CAQM said we would reconsider this.
Amicus curiae told the court that the officer responsible should be found guilty. Because these people have been just making comments for so many years. The CAQM said this was the first time we had taken action under Article 14. We do not want to prosecute them under Article 14. Because we have to get the job done from these officials. But we have issued notices. We will inform the courts of the actions taken against those officers responsible for negligence and breaches of regulations.
The Supreme Court issued these directions
The Supreme Court said that the central and state governments should now think that living in clean air is the fundamental right of the people and how the government will provide a pollution-free environment to the people. Courts pass orders on pollution every year but the reality on the ground does not change. Therefore, it is time to take strict action against the violators.
Central government should amend Article 15: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court ordered the central government to amend Article 15 to increase fines for those who cause pollution. Amicus told the Supreme Court that Delhi has 13 hotspots, including Mundka, Anand Vihar, Patparganj, where pollution is increasing. The reason is waste incineration. The Supreme Court said the central government should take a decision within two weeks on the funds sought by the Punjab government over pollution issues.
