Heavy-duty vehicles: SC bats for pollution free environment

The Supreme Court has asked the government to frame a policy to phase out heavy-duty diesel vehicles such as trucks and replace them with BS VI vehicles which run on clean fuels saying that the citizens of the nation have the right to clean air. Writes ETV Bharat's Sumit Saxena.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has told the Centre to formulate a policy within six months on phasing out heavy-duty diesel vehicles, such as trucks and trailers with those BS VI, which are run on clean fuels, saying the right to life guaranteed under Article 21 includes the right to live in a pollution ­free environment.

The National Green Tribunal (NGT), in an order, had pointed out that there is an option to restrict the entry of diesel vehicles at Tughlakabad by diverting these vehicles to the ICDs at Dadri, Rewari, Ballabhgarh, Khatuawas or any other ICD around Delhi so as to control the pollution in Delhi NCR. On this aspect, the apex court said as if only the people living in Delhi-NCR alone are entitled to pollution free atmosphere and not those living in other parts of the country.

A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Pankaj Mithal, said such an observation by the NGT is in complete ignorance of the fact that citizens living in other parts of the country other than Delhi NCR also have a fundamental right to a pollution free environment as guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution of India. “Such a fundamental right is equally enforceable by all and is not confined to the people of Delhi-NCR”, said justice Oka, who authored the judgment on behalf of the bench.

"The NGT while protecting/safeguarding the fundamental right of the people of Delhi NCR cannot allow infringement of the same fundamental right of the citizens living outside Delhi NCR. The observation of the NGT is totally unjustified and unwarranted," the bench said.

The bench noted that the issue of pollution, particularly air pollution, has been a cause of concern for the last few decades and air pollution directly affects the fundamental rights of the citizens guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. “The right to life guaranteed under Article 21 includes the right to live in a pollution ­free environment. The issue of air pollution is of a great deal of importance to every citizen. Air pollution affects citizens' quality of life. It adversely affects health. This issue is more significant in the context of the severe air pollution faced by Delhi NCT and Delhi NCR areas during the last few years”, noted the bench, in its January 11 judgment.

The bench said for the last few months, the air quality index in the said areas has been in the category of very unhealthy or hazardous.

The apex court also asked the Union government's Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to continue exploring the possibility of finding better sources, including CNG, Hybrid or Electric, for the use of heavy-duty vehicles.

The apex court’s directions came on an appeal by the Container Corporation of India Ltd against the National Green Tribunal's March 8, 2019, orders to ensure that diesel vehicles stop visiting the Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Tughlakabad in Delhi and shift to electric, hybrid and CNG vehicles in phased manner.

The NGT had directed that the entry of diesel vehicles should be shifted to the satellite terminals (ICDs) at Dadri, Rewari, Ballabhgarh, Khatuawas or any other ICD around Delhi. The court-appointed Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) examined the issues.

The apex court accepted its recommendations as the Union government also in principle agreed to the report, and decided to monitor the implementation of its order. The apex court has scheduled the matter for consideration on July 31, 2024.

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