Green Body Slaps Rs 25 Crore Fine On Delhi Government Over Air Pollution

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) today asked the Delhi government to deposit Rs 25 crore with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for their failure to check pollution in the city.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel also asked the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government to furnish a performance guarantee of Rs 25 crore with the apex pollution monitoring body to ensure that there is no further lapse in this regard.

It said despite its clear directions, there is hardly any action for compliance of orders of the tribunal and pollution continues unabated in blatant violation of law and under the nose of the authorities "who have hardly done anything concrete except furnishing excuses and helplessness".

The green panel said even after more than four-and-a-half years, the complaint of the aggrieved parties is that pollution caused by the unregulated handling of plastic continues unabated.

The tribunal was hearing pleas filed by Mundka village resident Satish Kumar and Tikri-Kalan native Mahavir Singh alleging pollution caused by burning of plastic, leather, rubber, motor engine oil and other waste material as well as continuous operation of illegal industrial units on agricultural lands in Mundka and Neelwal villages.

The tribunal had earlier directed the Delhi chief secretary to co-ordinate with municipal authorities concerned, police authorities and other officials responsible for compliance of orders of this tribunal already passed.

It had asked the chief secretary to hold a joint meeting with the people considered and till the orders are not implemented, continue to hold such meetings at least once a month.

"It will be open to the chief secretary to seek feedback from concerned inhabitants about the ground situation," the NGT had said.

Air quality in Delhi oscillated between the "poor" and "very poor" categories today due to local pollutants as authorities predicted further rise in the pollution level.