Will Bring New Legislation To Tackle Air Pollution In Delhi-NRC, Centre Tells Supreme Court

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the apex court that the law is in the formulation and the draft will be ready within 4-5 days. The law will become operational this year and if the need arises, the government is willing to issue an ordinance.

(Image: PTI)

New Delhi: Taking in the view of the deteriorating air quality of the National Capital Region (NCR), Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the Supreme Court that the central government will soon bring a new law to deal specifically with the issue of air pollution in Delhi-NCR. The Solicitor General informed the apex court that the law is in formulation and the draft will be ready within 4-5 days. The bench, headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde, praised the move: "This is a welcome step. This is an issue that anyway should have been looked into by the government. Everyone in this city is choking due to bad air." SG Mehta added that the new law will examine the issues relating to air pollution, and may have a permanent body. "We acknowledge the mechanism we have at present has not worked too well. We are yet to finalize the fine print of the law. We will, however, be ready with a draft legislation very soon," he submitted. After the bench expressed satisfaction on this development. The Solicitor General then requested the bench to put suspension on its October 16 order whereby former apex court judge Madan B Lokur was appointed as a one-man commission to suggest measures to cut down pollution, in particular those caused due to stubble (parali) burning. Appearing for a teenager boy’s appeal for right to breathe clean air, opposed the SG’s request. Stating that the new law even framed and is ready will not be not be operational this year and therefore, Lokur's Commission should keep working. Solicitor General informed the court that the law is for "Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas". Mehta, on his part, said that the law will become operational this year and if the need arises, the government is willing to issue an ordinance. Asking the Solicitor General to submit the draft legislation before the court when ready, the bench then stayed the operation of its order of appointing Lokur Commission. "We had appointed the commission. We are now suspending it for a good reason. We are not going to say our order was bad but now when the government is coming up with a law, let us take a look at it first," said Justice Bobde. The bench will now take up the matter on Thursday when the main PIL on the issue of air pollution, filed by environmentalist MC Mehta in 1985, is taken up. The bench headed by the Chief Justice of India, expressed its concerns on 16^th October over the deteriorating air quality in Delhi-NCR, and said that people have a right to breathe clean air.