Supreme Court Rebukes Punjab And Haryana State Governments About Agriculture Pollution. The Supreme Court has held the central and state governments of Punjab and Haryana accountable for the toxic air that engulfs Delhi annually because of stubble burning.
Dismissing the government’s efforts as a mere eyewash, the bench of Justice Abhay S Oka, Justice A Amanuallah, and Justice AG Masih rapped the arguments and failure to enforce anti-pollution measures.
The court’s intervention comes amid a report stating that Delhi’s air health was impacted significantly by fire incidents in Punjab and Haryana. It contributed to a 103-unit increase in Delhi’s AQI, highlighting the need for urgent, coordinated fire management, especially stubble burning in neighboring states, and air quality interventions.
Aarti Khosla, Director at Climate Trends, said Delhi continues to struggle with poor air health. She believes the gap lies in communication as every stakeholder – from the farmers to the government to scientists, is doing their best.
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Supreme Court Unhappy
Appearing for the central government, Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati said Section 15 of the CAQM Act will be implemented effectively. This Act deals with penalties for stubble burning. She added that an adjudicating officer will be appointed and necessary actions will be taken to enforce the law effectively.
Bhati told the Supreme Court that the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has issued notices to Punjab and Haryana senior administrative officials as well as state pollution control boards seeking response as to why action shouldn’t be taken against them. She shared that they have recorded 1,000 cases of stubble burning in districts of Punjab – Amritsar, Ferozepur, Patiala, Sangrur and Taran Taran.
But the Punjab state government’s chief secretary said they were very small fires, and sometimes went overlooked. Haryana has recorded 655 fires so far this year. However, the court rapped the state government officials, saying it’s a hogwash.
