Supreme Court to hear plea seeking to declare AQI above 250 as a disaster under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 amid Delhi-NCR air pollution crisis.
Case in NewsA plea seeks to declare AQI above 250 as disaster before the Supreme Court of India amid Delhi-NCR’s worsening air pollution . |
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Case Overview
Case Name: MC Mehta v. Union of India, WP (C) 13029/1985
The Supreme Court of India is hearing a plea filed by environmental activist Vikrant Tongad, founder of Social Action for Forest & Environment (SAFE), seeking to classify Air Quality Index (AQI) levels above 250 as a disaster under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 . The Bench comprising Justice BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran is monitoring the Delhi-NCR air pollution crisis and has directed Punjab and Haryana to submit status reports on stubble burning . The matter is listed for hearing on November 17 .
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Key Aspects
The plea highlights the severe health and environmental consequences of unchecked air pollution and proposes measures to mitigate the crisis .
- Declaring AQI above 250 as a disaster under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 .
- Conducting studies by IITM Pune to examine effects of urbanisation and high-rise buildings on wind patterns .
- Implementing massive vegetation drives, roadside landscaping, and establishing a Green Wall around Delhi-NCR .
- Creating Environment and Climate Change Cells in all urban and rural local bodies .
- Expanding air monitoring stations in industrial and traffic-prone zones .
- Promoting clean fuels, affordable public transport, and stronger Pollution Control Boards (PCBs/PCCs) .
Legal Insights
This plea invokes Section 2(d) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 which defines disaster as a calamity arising from natural or man-made causes that results in loss of life or environmental degradation .
- The petition argues that severe air pollution meets this definition, making government intervention mandatory .
- Article 21 of the Constitution -It draws from the right to life under Article 21 emphasizing clean air as a fundamental right .
- The Supreme Court of India may examine whether Delhi’s chronic air pollution justifies treatment as a national environmental disaster .
Court’s Verdict
The Supreme Court of India has scheduled the matter for November 17, seeking responses from Punjab and Haryana . The Court will further consider the plea to declare AQI above 250 as a disaster and related environmental directives .
Source – Supreme Court of India
Read also – Constitution of India
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