Three Delhi toddlers, who pushed for a ban on firecrackers last year while asserting their right to be brought up in a pollution-free environment, prodded the grown-ups again to clear the city’s noxious air and persuaded the Supreme Court to back possible initiatives on Saturday.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India TS Thakur, which was contemplating imposition of a heavy environment tax on diesel cars, said experts should examine the feasibility of fitting vehicles with filters that scrub fumes from tailpipe emissions.
Arjun Gopal, Aarav Bhandari and Zoya Rao Bhasin, all aged between 6 to14 months, are the apex court’s youngest petitioners who were represented by their parents and a team of senior lawyers.
Youth Congress members take out a protest march against the odd-even scheme in the capital
The mounting levels of pollution that regularly cloak the Capital in smog often leave residents struggling to breathe in air quality that international agencies say is worse than in the Chinese capital of Beijing.
The legal team led by senior lawyer KK Venugopal and assisted by advocates Gopal Sankaranarayanan and Pooja Dhar suggested making it mandatory for all cars -old and new, petrol and diesel – to retrofit their engines with catalytic converters and diesel particulate filters, devices that “worked wonders in California and brought down pollution level by nearly 85 per cent”, changing toxic gases to less toxic pollutants.
“When CNG was introduced in Delhi, people said it is not possible and others said it is too expensive, but ultimately people started using it. Earlier, it took more than three months to convert a vehicle into CNG, but now it takes around two to three days and costs just Rs 40,000 to Rs 80,000,” Venugopal said, adding that retrofitting diesel vehicles will help reduce emission of particulate matter substantially.
Indian citizens have been demanding cleaner air as the World Health Organization estimates that more than 6,00,000 people die every year in the country because of diseases triggered by outdoor air pollution.
Court agreed to consider the plea for making it mandatory for all diesel cars to fit catalytic converters.
“We were only thinking in terms of imposing a cess. But why can’t we address pollution itself? Why cannot cars be modified? Let experts check, Centre examine,” the CJI said during a special Saturday hearing.
“If we find it feasible then why not? We are not shutting it out; we must consult others on it.”
The chief justice said this to senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who appeared for a car manufacturer, appealing for the lifting of a ban imposed on December 15 on the sale of diesel vehicles with engine capacity of more than 2000 cc.
The court has told automakers such as BMW, Mercedes, Toyota and Skoda that it can end the prohibition only after imposing a 10 to 30 per cent green cess, based on the categories of cars.
The bench also pulled up the Centre for supporting Venugopal’s idea immediately without coming up with any such plans earlier.
This happened when the court wondered if catalytic converters can be made mandatory when there is no “legal requirement”.
When additional solicitor general Maninder Singh said legislation can be passed to enable it, the CJI shot back: “Why did you have to wait till Venugopal made this submission?”
“You have woken up from slumber after Venugopal came up with this? You want somebody to point out this? What were you doing till now? See after all, this is affecting everybody. People are dying. What are the ministry officials doing? Simply sitting in their air-conditioned offices and sipping coffee?” Thakur questioned Singh.
Venugopal said the government should put the matter before environmental panels, including one set up by the court, and assess the plan’s viability.
“There are some converter companies to begin with and once it is a success, several others will come into the field,” he said.
A signboard put up near BJP leader Vijay Goel’s residence, which highlights the failure of odd-even scheme
The Supreme Court refuses to extend deadline fixed for their conversion into less-polluting CNG mode.
The bench, also comprising Justices AK Sikri and R Banumathi, had on March 31, extended the deadline till April 30 for conversion of all diesel taxis to CNG.
Diwan made a strong and emotional plea for modification of the order saying: “We will not be able to earn our livelihood. Moreover, we have to pay the bank also.”
A senior Delhi government official said about 60,000 taxis are registered in Delhi and of them 21,000 run on diesel.
There is already a ban on diesel cabs plying on local routes here. Taxis having all India permit are required to cover around 200km which is not a violation of the existing rules.
Taxis having all India permits cannot ply from one point to other point inside Delhi, the official said.
The deadline for the change had been extended twice. The apex court had initially asked diesel cab operators in the NCR to switch over to CNG by March 1.
That deadline was later extended to March 31 and then to April 30.
The Supreme Court, however, allowed Delhi Police and Delhi Jal Board to register their new diesel-run vehicles with an engine capacity of 2000 cc and above for transportation of undertrial prisoners, arms and ammunition and supply of water.
The bench comprising asked Delhi Police to pay 30% of the real value of the vehicle to be purchased by it as Environment Compensation Charge (ECC) or green cess as a pre-condition for their registration with the transport department.
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