Stubble fires must stop: SC

THE SC BENCH SAID DESPITE REPEATED DIRECTIONS ISSUED BY THE COURT OVER PAST MONTHS, AIR QUALITY IN DELHI CONTINUES TO BE HAZARDOUS

- Abraham Thomas

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that stubble-burning and other sources of pollution must be monitored constantly, putting Delhi and neighbouring states on their toes to implement a slew of suggestions proposed by a high-level committee headed by the cabinet secretary and report progress within two months in the endeavor to ensure a cleaner winter in the Capital by next year.

A bench headed by justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul noted that despite a series of steps taken and directions issued by the court over past months, the pollution in Delhi air continues to be hazardous with the air quality index (AQI) still above the 300 ("very poor") mark after being in the 400+ "severe" zones for several days since November.