Supreme Court - Daily Orders
M.C. Mehta vs Union Of India on 2 December, 2024
Author: Abhay S. Oka
Bench: Abhay S. Oka
ITEM NO.67 COURT NO.5 SECTION PIL-W
S U P R E M E C O U R T O F I N D I A
RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
WRIT PETITION(S)(CIVIL) NO(S). 13029/1985
M.C. MEHTA PETITIONER(S)
VERSUS
UNION OF INDIA & ORS. RESPONDENT(S)
(IN RE: COMMISSION FOR AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT (CAQM) (AIR
POLLUTION) AND IMPLEMENTATION OF GRAP IV 1) I.A. Nos. 270761 AND
270763/2024 (APPLICATIONS FOR DIRECTION AND INTERVENTION) NAME OF
THE FOLLOWING ADVOCATES MAY BE TREATED TO HAVE BEEN SHOWN IN THE
LIST: MR. HARISH N. SALVE, SR. ADVOCATE (A.C.) MS. APARAJITA SINGH,
SR. ADVOCATE (A.C.) MR. A.D.N. RAO, SR. ADVOCATE (A.C.) MR.
SIDDHARTHA CHOWDHURY, ADVOCATE (A.C.) MR. G.S. MAKKER, MR. AMRISH
KUMAR, MR. M.K. MARORIA MR. SANJAY KR. VISEN, MR. SUDEEP KUMAR, MR.
KARAN SHARMA, MR. SANDEEP KR. JHA MR. JYOTI MENDIRATTA, MR. RAHUL
KHURANA, MR. SAURABH AGRAWAL ADVOCATES)
Date : 02-12-2024 This matter was called on for hearing today.
CORAM :
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ABHAY S. OKA
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE AUGUSTINE GEORGE MASIH
Ms. Aparajita Singh, Sr. Adv. (Amicus Curiae)
Mr. A.D.N. Rao, Sr. Adv. (Amicus Curiae)
Mr. Siddhartha Chowdhury, Adv.(Amicus Curiae)
Ms. Shibani Ghosh, Adv.
Mr. Ishank Ranjan, Adv.
Mr. Aditya N. Prasad, Adv./Court Commissioner
(Co-ordinator)
Mr. Manan Verma, Adv./Court Commissioner
Mr. Pratyush Jain, Adv./Court Commissioner
Mr. Aditya Bharat Manubarwala, Adv./Court
Commissioner
Mr. Abhinav Aggarwal, Adv./Court Commissioner
Ms. Manisha Chava, Adv./Court Commissioner
Ms. Srishti Mishra, Adv./Court Commissioner
Signature Not Verified
Mr. Mohit Siwach, Adv./Court Commissioner
Digitally signed by
ASHISH KONDLE
Date: 2024.12.03
Mr. Abhishek Budhiraja, Adv./Court Commissioner
18:36:59 IST
Reason:
For the Parties Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, A.S.G.
Ms. Swarupma Chaturvedi, Sr. Adv.
1
Ms. Ruchi Kohli, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Gurmeet Singh Makker, AOR
Ms. Suhashinin Sen, Adv.
Mr. Chitvan Singhal, Adv.
Ms. Sweksha, Adv.
Ms. Neelakshi Bhadouria, Adv.
Mr. Rohan Gupta, Adv.
Mr. Gopal Sankaranarayanan, Sr. Adv.
Ms. Manali Singhal, Adv.
Ms. Diksha Rai, AOR
Ms. Aanchal Kapoor, Adv.
Mr. Deepak Singh Rawat, Adv.
Ms. Shreya Singhal, Adv.
Mr. Santosh Sachin, Adv.
Mr. Vishal Sinha, Adv.
Ms. Shreya Nair, Adv.
Ms. Apurva Sachdev, Adv.
Mr. Piyush Vyas, Adv.
Ms. Purvat Wali, Adv.
Mr. Pradyut Kashyap, Adv.
Mr. Shadan Farasat, Sr. Adv.
Ms. Jyoti Mendiratta, AOR
Ms. Ananya Basudha, Adv.
Mr. Pranvv Dhawan, Adv.
Ms. Natasha Maheshwari, Adv.
Mr. Sanjiv Sen, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Sanjay Vashishtha, Adv.
Ms. Anjali Singh, Adv.
Mr. Pragyan Mishra, Adv.
Mr. Prahlad Balaji, Adv.
Ms. Radha Gupta, Adv.
Mr. Shankey Agarwal, AOR
Ms. Garima Prashad, Sr. A.A.G.
Mr. Sudeep Kumar, AOR
Ms. Manisha, Adv.
Ms. Rupali, Adv.
Applicant-in-person, AOR
Petitioner-in-person
Mr. P.K. Jain, AOR
Mr. Ramesh Babu M.R., AOR
Mr. Rajesh Kumar Chaurasia, AOR
Mr. Radha Shyam Jena, AOR
2
Mr. Pradeep Kumar Bakshi, AOR
Mr. Ashok Mathur, AOR
Mr. V. K. Verma, AOR
Mr. Ajit Pudussery, AOR
Mrs. Bina Gupta, AOR
Ms. Adviteeya, Adv.
Mr. Rakesh K. Sharma, AOR
Ms. Sujeeta Srivastava, AOR
Mr. Alok Gupta, AOR
Mr. Anil Kumar Jha, AOR
Mr. Mukesh K. Giri, AOR
M/S. Parekh & Co., AOR
Mr. Sudhir Mendiratta, AOR
Mrs. Anil Katiyar, AOR
Mr. Hardeep Singh Anand, AOR
Mr. Sandeep Narain, AOR
Mr. Sushil Kumar Singh, AOR
Mrs. Rani Chhabra, AOR
Mr. G. Prakash, AOR
Ms. Nandini Gidwaney, AOR
Mr. Shri Narain, AOR
Mr. Umesh Kumar Khaitan, AOR
Ms. Shalini Kaul, AOR
Mr. K. R. Sasiprabhu, AOR
Mrs. K. Sarada Devi, AOR
Mr. Sanjay Kumar Visen, AOR
Mrs. Priya Puri, AOR
3
Mr. Lokesh Sinhal, Sr. A.A.G.
Mr. B.K. Satija, A.A.G.
Mr. Akshay Amritanshu, AOR
Mr. Rahul Khurana, Adv.
Ms. Himanshi Shakya, Adv.
Mr. Nikunj Gupta, Adv.
Ms. Drishti Saraf, Adv.
Ms. Pragya Upadhyay, Adv.
Ms. Swati Mishra, Adv.
Ms. Aakanksha, Adv.
Ms. Manjula Gupta, AOR
Mr. T.V. Ratnam, AOR
Mr. Balaji Srinivasan, AOR
Mr. Rajiv Ranjan Dwivedi, AOR
M/S. Khaitan & Co., AOR
Mr. S. S. Shroff, AOR
Mr. Sushil Kumar Jain, AOR
Mr. Aniruddha Deshmukh, AOR
Mr. Ravindra Bana, AOR
Mr. Surya Kant, AOR
Mrs. B. Sunita Rao, AOR
Mr. Abhishek, AOR
Mr. Sarvam Ritam Khare, AOR
Mr. Kushagra Sharma, Adv.
Mr. Anuj Agarwal, Adv.
Mr. R.P. Gupta, AOR
Mr. P. Parmeswaran, AOR
Mr. Mohit D. Ram, AOR
Mr. Pramod Dayal, AOR
Mr. Satya Mitra, AOR
M/S. M.V. Kini & Associates, AOR
Mr. Rakesh Kumar-I, AOR
4
Mr. Parijat Sinha, AOR
M/S. Saharya & Co., AOR
Mr. Nishe Rajen Shonker, AOR
Mrs. Anu K Joy, Adv.
Mr. Alim Anvar, Adv.
Mr. Pavan Kumar, AOR
M/S. S. Narain & Co., AOR
Mr. Sandeep Narain, Adv.
Ms. Kanak Malik, Adv.
Mr. Chirag M. Shroff, AOR
Mr. Ejaz Maqbool, AOR
Dr. Menaka Guruswamy, Sr. Adv.
Mr. S. Wasim A Quadri, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Praveen Swarup, AOR
Mr. Ajay Bansal, Adv.
Mr. Ravi Kumar, Adv.
Ms. Payal Swarup, Adv.
Dr. Ravinder Kumar Singh, Adv.
Mr. Prashant Kumar, AOR
Mrs. Aishwarya Bhati, A.S.G.
Mrs. Archna Pathak Dave, A.S.G.
Mr. Wasim Quadri, Sr. Adv.
Mrs. Ruchi Kohli, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Mukesh Kumar Maroria, AOR
Mrs. Suhasini Sen, Adv.
Mr. Rajesh Kr. Singh, Adv.
Mr. Subhranshu Padhi, Adv.
Mr. S S Rebello, Adv.
Mr. Jagdish Chandra Solanki, Adv.
Mr. Mahesh Agarwal, Adv.
Mr. E.C. Agrawala, AOR
Ms. Hemantika Wahi, AOR
Ms. Binu Tamta, AOR
Ms. Pritha Srikumar Iyer, AOR
Mr. Vivek Gupta, AOR
Mr. Vinay Garg, AOR
5
Ms. G. Indira, AOR
Mr. Subhro Sanyal, AOR
Ms. Misha Rohatgi, AOR
Mr. Ravi Prakash, AOR
Mr. Pukhrambam Ramesh Kumar, AOR
Mr. Vikrant Singh Bais, AOR
Mr. Alok Gupta, AOR
Mr. K. V. Mohan, AOR
Mr. Yash S. Vijay, AOR
Ms. Surbhi Mehta, AOR
Mr. Shovan Mishra, AOR
Ms. G. Indira, AOR
Mr. Yoginder Handoo, AOR
Ms. Nidhi Jaswal, AOR
Mr. Rakesh Kumar-I, AOR
Mr. Parminder Singh Bhullar, AOR
Mr. Shantanu Jugtawat, Adv.
Mr. Chandrakant Sukumar Sarkar, Adv.
Mr. Mukesh Kumar Singh, Adv.
Mr. Narendra Kumar Singh, Adv.
Mr. C M Dwivedi, Adv.
Mr. Vipin Sandu, Adv.
For M/S. Mukesh Kumar Singh And Co., AOR
Mr. Arjun D Singh, Adv.
Ms. Ankita Sharma, AOR
Mr. Kumar Dushyant Singh, AOR
Mr. Rohit Sharma, Adv.
Mr. Nikhil Purohit, Adv.
Mr. Jatin Lalwani, Adv.
Mr. Jay Rawat, Adv.
Mr. Mukesh Verma, Adv.
Mr. Pankaj Kumar Singh, Adv.
6
Mr. Vatsala Tripathi, Adv.
Mr. Yash Pal Dhingra, AOR
Mrs. Rajshri Dubey, Adv.
Mr. Abhishek Chauhan, Adv.
Mr. Amit P Shahi, Adv.
Mr. Amit Kumar, Adv.
Mr. H B Dubey, Adv.
Mr. Rahul Sethi, Adv.
Mr. Shashibhushan Nagar, Adv.
Mr. Sumant A Khan, Adv.
Mrs. Sona Khan, Adv.
Mr. Rajendra Anbhule, Adv.
Mr. Ashutosh Dubey, AOR
Mr. Chandra Prakash, AOR
Mr. Anuj Bhandari, AOR
Mr. Anil Kumar, AOR
Ms. Lubna Naaz, AOR
Ms. Shashi Kiran, AOR
Ms. Aastha Mehta, Adv.
Ms. Deepanwita Priyanka, AOR
Ms. Prerana Mohapatra, Adv.
Ms. Prina Sharma, Adv.
Mr. Raghvendra Kumar, AOR
Mr. Anando Mukherjee, AOR
Mr. Shwetank Singh, Adv.
Ms. Sanjivani Aggarwal, Adv.
Ms. Jyoti Aggarwal, Adv.
Mr. Pradeep Shekhawat, Adv.
Ms. Filza Moonis, AOR
M/S. Karanjawala & Co., AOR
Mr. V.N. Raghupathy, AOR
Ms. Charu Ambwani, AOR
Ms. Astha Sharma, AOR
Mr. Abhijit Pattanaik, Adv.
Mr. Rajesh Kumar Maurya, Adv.
Mr. Neeraj Shekhar, AOR
7
Mr. Mohit Paul, AOR
Mr. Nischal Kumar Neeraj, AOR
Mr. Shalen Bhardwaj, Adv.
Ms. Lakshmi, Adv.
Ms. Garima Kumar, Adv.
Mr. Virender Kumar, Adv.
Mr. Ashok Kumar Panigrahi, Adv.
Mr. Deepender Kumar Pathak, Adv.
Ms. Ekta Kalra, Adv.
Mr. Nishit Agrawal, AOR
Dr. Menaka Guruswamy, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Yash S. Vijay, AOR
Mr. Utkarsh Pratap, Adv.
Ms. Arunima Das, Adv.
Ms. Pooja B. Mehta, Adv.
Mr. Yashraj Singh Bundela, AOR
Mr. Surjeet Singh, Adv.
Mr. Chanakya Baruah, Adv.
Ms. Saloni, Adv.
Mr. Rohan Singla, Adv.
Mr. Pulkit Agarwal, AOR
Mr. S S Bandyopadhyay, Adv.
Mr. Abhaya Nath Das, Adv.
Mr. Pinaki Chowdhury, Adv.
Mr. Om Prakash Sapra, Adv.
Mr. B C Bhatt, Adv.
Ms. Monica Goel, Adv.
Mr. Kishor Kumar Mishra, Adv.
Mr. Aditya Mishra, Adv.
Mr. Hukum Deo Prasad, Adv.
Ms. Saket Gautam, Adv.
Mr. Gulam Rabbani, Adv.
Mr. Satish Kumar, AOR
Mr. Gaurav, AOR
Mr. Shuvodeep Roy, AOR
Mr. Deepayan Dutta, Adv.
Mr. Saurabh Tripathi, Adv.
Ms. Divya Jyoti Singh, AOR
Mr. Vinay Garg, AOR
Mr. T.R.B. Sivakumar, AOR
8
Ms. Manju Jetley, AOR
Mr. Amrish Kumar, AOR
Mr. Harsh V. Surana, AOR
Ms. Rakhi Ray, AOR
Ms. Ishita Jain, AOR
Mr. Anand Kumar Shrivastava, Adv.
Mr. Ankit Bhandari, Adv.
Mr. Manish Kumar Gupta, AOR
Ms. Tulika Mukherjee, AOR
Mr. Beenu Sharma, Adv.
Mr. Venkat Narayan, Adv.
Mr. Akshay Girish Ringe, AOR
Ms. Aswathi M.K., AOR
M/S. M. V. Kini & Associates, AOR
Mr. Pradeep Misra, AOR
Mr. Daleep Dhyani, Adv.
Mr. Suraj Singh, Adv.
Mr. Manish Kumar, AOR
Mr. Divyansh Mishra, Adv.
Mr. Puneet Taneja, AOR
Ms. Vrinda Bhandari, AOR
Ms. Charu Mathur, AOR
Ms. Sakshi Kakkar, AOR
Ms. Shagun Matta, AOR
Mr. Gaurav, AOR
Mr. Gopal Jha, AOR
Mr. Shishir Deshpande, AOR
Mr. D. Kumanan, AOR
Ms. Pritha Srikumar Iyer, AOR
Ms. Rooh-e-hina Dua, AOR
9
Mr. Mudit Gupta, AOR
Ms. Divya Roy, AOR
Mr. Sandeep Narain, Adv.
Ms. Kanak Malik, Adv.
For M/S. S. Narain & Co., AOR
Mr. Shiv Mangal Sharma, A.A.G.
Mr. Sandeep Kumar Jha, AOR
Ms. Nidhi Jaswal, Adv.
Ms. Shalini Singh, Adv.
Mr. Saurabh Rajpal, Adv.
Ms. Puja Sharma, AOR
Mr. Gautam Narayan, AOR
Mr. Neeraj Kumar Gupta, AOR
Mr. Danish Zubair Khan, AOR
Mr. Vikas Mehta, AOR
Mr. H S Phoolka, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Niraj Gupta, AOR
Mrs. Anshu Gupta, Adv.
Mr. Mukesh Kumar Jain, Adv.
Mr. Shekhar Kumar, AOR
Mr. Rajan Narain, AOR
Mr. Ayush Sharma, AOR
Mr. Anurag Kishore, AOR
Ms. Mayuri Raghuvanshi, AOR
Dr. Brij Bhushan K Jauhari, Adv.
Mr. Deepak Jyoti Ghildiyal, Adv.
Mr. Harsh Mahan, Adv.
Ms. Purnima Jauhari, AOR
Mr. Hiren Dasan, AOR
Mr. Ajay Vikram Singh, AOR
Ms. Priyanka Singh, Adv.
Mr. K. Paari Vendhan, AOR
10
Mr. Gurminder Singh, AG, Punjab
Mr. Rahul Mehra, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Vivek Jain, DAG
Mr. Prashant Manchanda, AAG
Mr. Karan Sharma, AOR
Ms. Jaikriti S. Jadeja, AOR
Ms. Astha Tyagi, AOR
Mr. Sunil Fernandes, AOR
Mr. Kuldip Singh, AOR
Ms. Anushree Prashit Kapadia, AOR
Mr. Ketan Paul, AOR
M/S. Ram Sankar & Co, AOR
Ms. Malvika Kapila, AOR
Mr. Gaurav Kejriwal, AOR
Mr. Sameer Abhyankar, AOR
Mr. Rahul Kumar, Adv.
Mr. Aryan Srivastava, Adv.
Mr. Aakash Thakur, Adv.
Mr. S.S. Shroff, AOR
Ms. Madhumita Bhattacharjee, AOR
Ms. Debarati Sadhu, Adv.
Ms. Srija Choudhury, Adv.
Mr. Anas Tanwir, AOR
Mr. Vikrant Singh Bais, AOR
Mr. Soumya Dutta, AOR
Mr. Sameer Kumar, AOR
Mr. Ajay Pal, AOR
Mr. Dhananjaya Mishra, AOR
Mr. Rahul Khurana, AOR
Mr. Rajiv Yadav, AOR
Mr. Vipin Nair, AOR
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Mr. Rishi Matoliya, AOR
Mr. D. Abhinav Rao, AOR
Mr. Durga Dutt, AOR
Mr. Avijit Mani Tripathi, AOR
Ms. Rashmi Malhotra, AOR
Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, A.S.G.
Ms. Swarupma Chaturvedi, Sr. Adv.
Ms. Ruchi Kohli, Sr. Adv.
Ms. Suhashinin Sen, Adv.
Mr. Chitvan Singhal, Adv.
Ms. Sweksha, Adv.
Ms. Neelakshi Bhadouria, Adv.
Mr. Rohan Gupta, Adv.
Mr. Gurmeet Singh Makker, AOR
Mr. Gaurav Choudhary, AOR
Mr. Ravindra Kumar, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Shivam Saxena, Adv.
Mr. Vipin Kumar Saxena, Adv.
Mr. Binay Kumar Das, AOR
Ms. Priyanka Das, Adv.
Ms. Neha Das, Adv.
Mr. V P Pandey, Adv.
Ms. K. Enatoli Sema, AOR
Ms. Limayinla Jamir, Adv.
Mr. Amit Kumar Singh, Adv.
Ms. Chubalemla Chang, Adv.
Mr. Prang Newmai, Adv.
Ms. Nidhi Mohan Parashar, AOR
Mr. P. Parmeswaran, AOR
Mrs. Aishwarya Bhati, A.S.G.
Mrs. Archana Pathak Dave, A.S.G.
Mrs. Ruchi Kohli, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Raj Bahadur Yadav, AOR
Mrs. Alka Agarwal, Adv.
Ms. Sonali Jain, Adv.
Mr. Ashok Kumar B, Adv.
Ms. Baby Devi Bonia, Adv.
Mr. Anirudh Bhat, Adv.
Mr. Prashant Singh II, Adv.
12
Mr. Nirnimesh Dube, AOR
Mr. Ravindra S. Garia, AOR
Mr. Talha Abdul Rahman, AOR
Mr. Guntur Pramod Kumar, AOR
Mr. Keshav Singh, Adv.
Mr. B.P. Naidu, Adv.
Mr. M. P. Devanath, AOR
Ms. Ruchi Kohli, Sr. Adv.
Ms. Srishti Mishra, Adv.
Mr. Sumeet Mishra, Adv.
Mr. R.C. Kohli, AOR
Mr. D. Abhinav Rao, AOR
Mr. Prakash Ranjan Nayak, AOR
Mr. Nitin Saluja, AOR
Mr. Deepayan Mandal, AOR
Ms. Shalu Sharma, AOR
Mr. Sahil Tagotra, AOR
Mr. Akhil Anand, AOR
Mr. Prashant Singh, AOR
Mrs. Prerna Dhall, Adv.
Mr. Piyush Yadav, Adv.
Ms. Akanksha Singh, Adv.
Ms. Pearl Sharma, Adv.
Mr. M N Gopinadh, Adv.
Mr. M A Chaudhary, Adv.
Mr. Pranav Sachdeva, AOR
Mr. Sameer Shrivastava, AOR
Mr. Debojit Borkakati, AOR
Mr. Aakarshan Aditya, AOR
Mr. Satya Mitra, AOR
Mr. Prasanna S., AOR
13
Ms. Mithu Jain, AOR
Ms. Asha Gopalan Nair, AOR
M/S. Ahmadi Law Offices, AOR
Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, A.S.G.
Ms. Archana Pathak Dave, A.S.G.
Ms. Suhasini Sen, Adv.
Mr. Rajesh Kr.singh, Adv.
Mr. Subhranshu Padhi, Adv.
Mr. Gaurang Bhushan, Adv.
Ms. Sweksha, Adv.
Dr. N. Visakamurthy, AOR
Mr. Aashhish Chauhan, Adv.
Ms. Sonal Chauhan, Adv.
Ms. Vanya Gupta, AOR
Ms. Pavani Verma, Adv.
Ms. Surabhi Sanchita, AOR
Mr. Vinod Sharma, AOR
M/S. Ram Sankar & Co, AOR
Mr. Mahfooz Ahsan Nazki, AOR
Mr. Vinodh Kanna B., AOR
Mr. Sandeep Singh, AOR
Ms. N. Annapoorani, AOR
Mr. S. Gowthaman, AOR
Ms. Neeru Vaid, AOR
Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, A.S.G.
Ms. Archana Pathak Dave, A.S.G.
Ms. Suhashini Sen, Adv.
Mr. Subhranshu Padhi, Adv.
Mr. Gaurang Bhushan, Adv.
Mr. Raghav Sharma, Adv.
Mr. Rajesh Kumar Singh, Adv.
Mr. Shreekant Neelappa Terdal, AOR
Ms. Kanu Agrawal, Adv.
Mr. Bhuvan Kapoor, Adv.
Mr. Varun Chugh, Adv.
Mr. Krishna Kant Dubey, Adv.
Mr. Indira Bhakar, Adv.
14
Mr. Avi Singh, Sr. Adv.
Mr. Shiven Varma, Adv.
Mr. Dhruv Malik, Adv.
Ms. Komal Mundhra, Adv.
Mr. Saurabh Agrawal, AOR
Ms. Shyel Trehan, Sr. Adv.
Chirayu Jain, Adv.
Mr. Rohan Poddar, Adv.
Ms. Vidhi Jain, Adv.
Mr. Garvit Sharma, Adv.
Mr. Shivendra Singh, AOR
UPON hearing the counsel the Court made the following
O R D E R
1. We find that none of the NCR States, namely Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, have reported compliance with our earlier order regarding payment of subsistence amount to the construction workers. None of the NCR States have pointed out to us that even a penny has been paid so far. We direct the Chief Secretaries of these States to remain present through video conference on 5th December, 2024 at 3:30 p.m. In the meanwhile, the NCR States are free to file their compliance affidavits.
2. We make it clear that unless substantial compliance with actual payment of amounts to the construction workers is reported, we will have to consider of initiating an action under the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971 against the erring officers.
3. A compliance report dated 2nd December, 2024 is tendered across the Bar by Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, learned ASG, on behalf of the Commission for Air Quality Management (for short, “the Commission”). In paragraph 15 of the compliance report, the Commission has stated the mitigation measures which the Commission 15 has decided to implement. We direct the Commission to take further steps for communicating these mitigating measures to all the concerned Authorities and to coordinate an effort to ensure that these mitigating measures are actually implemented.
4. As regards the suggestion for modification of applicability of GRAP-IV, we will hear the parties on this aspect on 5th December, 2024 at 3:30 p.m. On that day, we will also examine the AQI levels and find out whether there is any downward trend. Some of the relaxations have been suggested by the Commission in the compliance report dated 2nd December, 2024. We will hear the parties on those measures and pass an appropriate order.
5. Very shocking things are revealed from all the five reports filed by the Court Commissioners. We find that there is a complete lack of coordination amongst the stakeholders like Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Delhi Government, Delhi Police, Police Authorities and Delhi Pollution Control Committee when it comes to implementation of all GRAP measures. It is the responsibility of the Commission to coordinate activities of all these entities with a view to ensure that GRAP measures are implemented. As far as the entry points are concerned, needless to add that all the entry points must be manned. However, it is for the Delhi Police to take a call and ensure that wherever more police presence is needed, necessary postings are made. The Delhi Police will make rational use of the Police force. As we have stated earlier, the Commission will have to coordinate the effort of all the agencies involved and ensure that adequate manpower is deputed at the entry points. 16
6. We must place on record the commendable work done by the Court Commissioners appointed by this Court. The reports tendered today show that they have even risked their lives and faced threats. They faced the situation for discharging their duties. Firstly, we refer to the report prepared by Shri Manan Verma and in particular paragraphs 2 to 4 of the report. We direct the Delhi Police to file a report to this Court setting out the action taken by the Police.
7. Secondly, we have also perused the report submitted by Shri Jatin Kumar and Ms. Savi Nagpal. We direct Shri Balram Singh, Station House Officer of Police Station Baba Hari Dass Nagar, to file his response as to what is stated in the report. We direct him to personally remain present in the Court on 5th December, 2024.
8. Another shocking thing which is revealed from the report is that the employees of the Toll Contractor by using WhatsApp, are communicating the movement of the Court Commissioners. The Delhi Government to immediately take an action in this regard. In the same report, an instance of stubble burning has been pointed out.
9. We cannot allow the members of the Bar to risk their lives as the reports indicate that some of them were subjected to threats. We, therefore, give an option to the Court Commissioners. Only those who want to continue the work entrusted to them can continue. Those Court Commissioners, who desire to continue to work, will send an e-mail to the Nodal Officer appointed by the Delhi Police. We direct that protection of armed policemen shall be given to 17 those Court Commissioners by the Delhi Police and the armed Police shall be given clear instructions that they will not communicate the movement of the Court Commissioners to anyone. We make it clear that it is the responsibility of the Delhi Police to ensure that the members of the Bar, who are acting as Court Commissioners, are adequately protected.
10. We direct the Commission to constitute a team of officers to go through reports submitted by the Court Commissioners and take up the issues of non-compliance with the concerned Authorities and stakeholders so that an action can be immediately initiated on the basis of the defaults pointed out by the Court Commissioners. On 5th December, 2024, we will consider the question of paying a reasonable remuneration to the Court Commissioners.
11. We have perused the earlier orders passed by this Court from time to time dealing with the issues which arose from October to January every year. We propose to go into all the aspects of pollution and try to find out permanent solutions. The permanent solutions will have to be found out in respect of stubble burning and various other causes of pollution. We request Ms. Aparajita Singh, learned Senior Advocate appointed as Amicus Curiae to prepare a note on these issues within a period of two weeks from today so that we can assign dates for considering these issues.
12. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi will also consider of suspending the golden passes issued to the vehicles whose entry has been prohibited under GRAP-IV.
18
13. We permit the Delhi Government to carry out the work of repair of sewage and work of repair of only those roads which are in bad condition. However, we make it clear that not a single vehicle shall be used for these purposes which is not permissible in accordance with law.
14. List the Petition on 5th December, 2024 at 3:30 p.m. (ASHISH KONDLE) (AVGV RAMU) COURT MASTER (SH) COURT MASTER (NSH) 19