Stating that the “Harsh reality is (that) except meetings, nothing is happening” on the ground, the Supreme Court on Thursday came down heavily on Punjab and Haryana governments including the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) for their failure to take enough steps to curb and control stubble burning (paddy crop residue burning) contributing to the problem of air pollution in the national capital.

A bench of Justice Abhay S. Oka, Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Justice Augustine George Masih chided the Commission for Air Quality Management for its failure to control the stubble burning around the national capital and said that it made no effort to enforce its own direction to prevent such incidents. Perusing the compliance report by the CAQM, the court noted that the Commission has not launched a single prosecution in the cases involving stubble burning.

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On the seriousness with which CAQM meetings are taken by its members, the bench noted that only five out of eleven members attended the Commission’s meeting held on August 29 to discuss the issue of air pollution in Delhi and the directions of top court were not even discussed.

Both the Punjab and Haryana governments were also on the receiving end for not taking penal action against farmers engaged in stubble burning and the officials empowered for taking action against them (farmers). “No change will occur if penal action was not being taken at the grassroots level,” the bench observed, taking exception to both Haryana and Punjab collecting nominal compensation from the farmers burning stubble contributing to poor air quality in Delhi.

On the compliance affidavit filed by the CAQM, it said, “From affidavit of compliance we find that no effort is being made by CAQM for implementation of its own directions, not a single prosecution has been initiated. Last meeting was only held on August 29 and there was no discussion on stubble burning. Entire September there was no meeting. Only five out of eleven members attended the meeting… It is all in the air, total lack of sensitisation.”

Posting the matter for October 16, the court directed the Centre and CAQM to file affidavits within a week. In the last hearing on September 24, the apex court had asked the CAQM to explain the steps being taken to curb and control air pollution caused by paddy crop residue burning in the National Capital Region and in the adjoining areas. It had noted that stubble burning was one of the causes contributing to air pollution in Delhi-NCR during winters.