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Noting the low compliance with its air pollution control guidelines in the Delhi-NCR region, the Center said the names of offenders – private and government entities – would also be disclosed.
"Regardless of the size of an agency or the influence of its manager, the Central Pollution Control Commission (CPCB) will not hesitate to institute criminal proceedings against them. We will have to do it strictly and religiously, "said Environment Minister Harsh Dit Vardhan. This initiative recognizes the need for action in the Delhi-NCR region, in addition to efforts to reduce external sources of pollution, such as thatching.
In Delhi and neighboring regions, agencies involved in infrastructure construction are largely government entities such as PWD, the Delhi Metro, NHAI, civic organizations and public construction companies. These are big projects that are perceived as major contributors to dust, a major component of the pollution of the capital.
Explaining the standards, Vardhan said one agency will have two days to respond to a complaint. "A warning will be issued or reported on the third day on the Sameer application of the Ministry.If this does not occur within 48 hours of the warning, the CPCB will initiate criminal proceedings", he declared.
Full details, including compliance and prosecution, will be uploaded on the "media corner" of the CPCB website and on the "Sameer" application (the government's application on the index of the quality of the air) so that everyone can access the details. "Show a mirror to agencies (not compliant)," Vardhan said.
Although the current law empowers the CPCB and state pollution control boards to take action in this regard, this practice has rarely been used and, subsequently, the consequences on the ground have had little impact. consequences.
CK Mishra, Secretary for the Environment, said: "We will tackle any offender", reflecting the urgency of the situation as Delhi grapples with a "very poor quality" of Despite an improvement in the average level of hazardous particles (PM2.5 and PM10) compared to last year.
Asked how to launch criminal proceedings against government agencies, CPCB President S Singh Parihar said the exact details would be ready on Monday and that they would be communicated to all agencies.
Under existing provisions, he stated that the CPCB is empowered under the Environmental Protection Act and that "the European law contains a provision that allows the CPCB to engage in the protection of the environment. criminal prosecution in cases where compliance does not comply with the instructions ". This has already happened in district courts and the NGT. Speaking on the issue, the minister said, "Now it will be done with more passion."
Decisions were taken during a meeting on the comments received from 41 CPCB teams tasked with controlling air pollution in Delhi and four neighboring NCR cities. The minister said it was very disappointing to know that the five cities – Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Faridabad and Ghaziabad – were getting a fairly poor score for the compliance index (ratio of actions taken and complaints reported).
Together, the five cities reported nearly 2,600 different offense complaints in the last month, but compliance was not reported in 10% of cases. "We can not just blame stubble for Delhi's woes, we will have to look inward and focus on the rules, and we will have to continue the struggle," said the minister.
The ministry also convened on November 1 a meeting of environment ministers and senior officials from Delhi and the NCR states – Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan – for to raise awareness of these decisions.
