New Delhi. The Supreme Court heard the suo motu case regarding the increasing air pollution in Delhi-NCR. During this period, a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant discussed issues like burning of stubble, pollution caused by vehicles and providing necessary facilities to farmers for stubble management. The bench also included Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana.
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During the hearing, CJI Surya Kant said in a light tone, 'We hope that all of you are enjoying the weather of Delhi.' On this, senior advocate Aparajita Singh, amicus curiae in the case, said that the level of pollution remains around the serious category. He said that even people's voice is being affected due to pollution. It feels like smoking 30 cigarettes a day.
Pollution reduced due to rain, but situation still serious
Aparajita Singh said that due to rain in Delhi, there has been some decline in the pollution level. Citing figures for November 5, he said the contribution of stubble burning to pollution that day was 14 percent. He said Delhi is already polluted and stubble burning makes the situation worse. However, he clarified that transportation is one of the biggest problems in Delhi-NCR. Along with local pollution, the problem of stubble burning also needs to be addressed seriously. He also counted pollution caused by transportation, energy and garbage burning as major problems in NCR.
The problem of stubble burning will not stop just by giving machines to farmers.
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During the hearing, CJI Surya Kant said that this is the time when farmers sow the next crop. In such a situation, the problem of stubble burning should stop. On this, Aparajita Singh said that the problem will not be solved merely by providing machines to farmers for stubble management. Many farmers do not even have money to buy fuel to run the machines. Apart from this, it is also difficult to use these machines in small farms. Justice Joymalya Bagchi said during this time that a proposal was also made by the authorities to buy stubble at a fixed rate.
Question on pollution caused by vehicles of rich class also
At the end of the hearing, CJI Surya Kant expressed the need to pay attention to the role of other sections of the society instead of holding only farmers responsible for pollution. He raised the question that what steps are being taken on pollution caused by vehicles of elite and rich class people? Through this comment, the court clearly indicated that to deal with the problem of pollution in Delhi-NCR, apart from stubble burning, it is important to also pay attention to transportation and local sources of pollution.