While hearing the petition filed on rising pollution in Delhi, the Supreme Court took Haryana-Punjab to task.
Chandigarh News (Aaj Samaj) Chandigarh: Cases of stubble burning in the fields of Haryana and Punjab are continuously increasing. Due to which pollution has increased in the environment of Delhi. Due to increasing air pollution, people find it difficult to breathe. Due to the increase in pollution, the number of patients suffering from diseases such as cough, eye irritation, etc. is increasing in hospitals. The state government has also given orders to register cases and arrest farmers who burn stubble. But despite this, cases of stubble burning are not decreasing. A hearing was held in the Supreme Court on Wednesday on the continuing rise in environmental pollution in Delhi. During this period, the chief secretaries of Haryana and Punjab were also present in the Supreme Court. During the hearing, the Supreme Court came down heavily on the Punjab and Haryana chief secretary for failing to stop the continuous rise in stubble burning cases in Haryana and Punjab.
The bench comprising Justice Abhay S Oka, Justice A Amanullah and Justice AG Masih said the efforts of the Haryana and Punjab governments to stop stubble burning in the fields are just a show. The court said that we are not forced to give strict orders. The Supreme Court even said that the time has come to remind the central, Punjab and Haryana governments that living in a pollution-free environment is a fundamental right of citizens. Living in a polluted environment is a serious violation of fundamental rights set out in Article 21. The Supreme Court said that if governments are really interested in enforcing the law, then at least one case should be pursued. NORTH
The court also reprimanded the Air Quality Management Commission
The Supreme Court gave two weeks to the Central Government to make rules under the Environment Protection Act regarding air pollution and appoint responsible officials. Due to the continuous rise in pollution in Delhi-NCR, the Supreme Court has reprimanded the Air Quality Management Commission. The court said the Commission did not prepare any mechanism to enforce restrictions to prevent pollution. Why were no direct actions taken against the officials who failed to stop the pollution, but only issued notices and asked for answers? On which the Central Government has assured the Supreme Court that within 10 days action will be taken against those who burn stubble under the UPA Act. The next hearing in the case will be on November 4.
The situation is worse in Panipat, Karnal and Kurukshetra
The situation is worsening due to incidents of stubble burning in Panipat, Karnal and Kurukshetra of Haryana. Cases of stubble burning have been reported from 198 places in Kurukshetra, Karnal and Panipat, while the number of such cases across Haryana is 680. A day ago, the ICA in Panipat had crossed 500. Today AQI has reached to 450 in Panipat, 420 in Kurukshetra and 402 in Karnal. Doctors say that breathing air with an AQI over 500 is equivalent to smoking 25 to 30 cigarettes a day. An AQI of 300-350 can be equivalent to 15-20 cigarettes a day. You can imagine how seriously this affects health.
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