The Supreme Court expressed its extreme displeasure that the Delhi Police have not set up checkposts at the borders of the city to maintain pollution controls, calling it a “serious lapse.”
A bench headed by Justice A.S. Oka showed a prima facie intention to initiate prosecution against the Delhi Police Commissioner under the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) Act. The court noticed that there were only 23 checkpoints operational on November 18, when Stage 4 of GRAP was enforced, as opposed to a pan-citywide deployment across all identified locations.
The court maintained the measures of GRAP IV in Delhi and ordered CAQM to consider relaxations for students, as many of them were deprived of midday meals, online classes, or air purifiers due to this pollution crisis.
The court has now named 13 members as commissioners to oversee the implementation of all measures outlined in GRAP IV. Thirteen Commissioners have submitted a report on the prevailing state of affairs before the court on November 25.
The bench also cited the lack of checkposts at the borders of Delhi and the incomplete / ineffective enforcement of the ban on entry of trucks into the capital city. It was pointed out that there was no police or government official at these checkposts, and only the toll collection staff from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi was stationed at those points.
“Why was the police not directed to take action under Stage IV of the GRAP? We will initiate prosecution against all officials involved,” said the court. When Advocate Shadan Farasat, appearing for the Delhi government, said that directions have been issued by CAQM, the court wanted to know about written instructions given to police by the state and central government on November 18.
Farasat said the directions were issued to deploy police personnel at 23 selected checkpoints where entry of trucks was permissible in the city. The court then remarked, “It is a case of negligence. You just cannot pass this kind of order to deploy personnel only at these entry points without ensuring any proper monitoring. We will ask the CAQM to prosecute the Commissioner of Delhi Police.”
The court underscored that it is a question of efficient monitoring: “You could only conclude that trucks do not enter through these points if you had someone there to oversee the situation.”
