New Delhi: Taking a strong stand on the rising air pollution in Delhi-NCR, the Supreme Court on Monday sought an affidavit from the Air Quality Management Commission (AQMC). The court asked the commission what steps have been taken so far to control pollution. A bench of Chief Justice B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran said that the authorities should not only take action when the situation worsens, but should prepare in advance to prevent the situation from becoming critical.
During the hearing, senior advocate Aparajita Singh, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae, said that many air quality monitoring stations in Delhi were not functioning during Diwali. She said that only nine out of 37 stations were working continuously. Singh said that if the monitoring stations are not functioning properly, it will be difficult to determine when to implement the Graded Response Action Plan.
The Supreme Court said that the commission should explain what steps it has taken to prevent pollution from reaching "critical levels". The court ordered the CAQM to file a detailed affidavit detailing the actions already taken and proposed. The court also said that the agencies should "prepare" instead of just "reacting"