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Supreme Court Ends 41-Year Fight for Cleaner Air
14 Mar
Summary
- Supreme Court concluded a landmark 41-year environmental case on Thursday.
- The case led to significant measures like CNG public transport and industry shifts.
- It established environmental jurisprudence and expanded rights to a clean environment.
After more than four decades, the Supreme Court has concluded one of India's most significant environmental cases. The public interest litigation, filed by lawyer MC Mehta in 1985, initiated a legal journey that profoundly reshaped environmental regulation in the country, particularly concerning Delhi-NCR.
The petition, initially focused on vehicular pollution, evolved to address broader environmental issues. Over the years, the court issued critical directives such as mandating public transport to switch to compressed natural gas (CNG), leading to the closure or relocation of thousands of polluting industries, and phasing out leaded petrol. These measures aimed to drastically reduce pollution levels.
Further significant outcomes include the construction of the Eastern and Western Peripheral Expressways to divert traffic, the imposition of environmental compensation charges, and the development of emergency measures like the Graded Response Action Plan. The case also led to the establishment of the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority, which operated from 1998 to 2021.
Legal experts highlight the case's transformative impact, stating it "fundamentally re-engineered Delhi's air quality governance by establishing an environmental jurisprudence." It utilized constitutional rights to force a clean energy transition, significantly minimizing dirty fuel use and curbing pollution levels. The case also constitutionalized environmental protection, embedding principles like absolute liability and the polluter-pays rule into Indian law.
