GRAP is like giving medicine to an already seriously ill patient, going back to basics: the Supreme Court

A cold sunny afternoon in Delhi saw a large number of people basking in the sun near Kartavya Path. | Photo Courtesy: Sushil Kumar Verma

The Supreme Court on Thursday (Dec 19, 2024) likened the implementation of emergency anti-pollution measures like the Graded Action Response Plan (GRAP) in the National Capital Region (NCR) of Delhi to “already given medicine to a critically ill patient”.

The bench presided over by Justice AS Oka stated that the condition of the capital is ‘disastrous’ as 3,000 tonnes of municipal waste is produced daily and is not processed as an effective source of fire, pollution and disease.

“If 3,000 tonnes of processed waste is generated every day, isn’t it necessary for the Delhi government and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to come together and put a brake on some development activities to prevent further generation of solid waste…if? Big residential projects are going on, they will create more garbage… Today there is 3000 gap, it will increase every day… Someday this court should take a call. Stop certain development activities to curb solid waste generation,” Justice Oka said.

The Delhi government has said it is starting biomining in its landfills but agrees that the areas under its jurisdiction generate 11,000 tonnes of solid waste every day and have the capacity to treat only 8,000 tonnes. However, by the middle of 2027, the gap between production and processing waste will be reduced, he said.

Justice Oka responded that the bridge between treated and untreated waste would widen over the years.

The court directed the Chief Secretary of Delhi to submit a detailed affidavit detailing the number of fires in the landfills last year and what preventive measures had been taken.

During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General for the Air Quality Management Commission Aishwarya Bhati said that the GRAP-IV restrictions have been withdrawn in Delhi NCR due to a disturbing spike in air pollution.

Even with GRAP-IV, the situation is critical. They (GRAP measures) are like drugs given after a patient becomes seriously ill. We have to deal with the basic issues… why this is going wrong,” Justice Oka said.

Meanwhile, the court asked the NCR states to identify the workers who were deprived of their livelihood due to the imposition of GRAP-IV and provide subsistence allowance from the labor cess fund. The court said that if the worker is not registered, the allowance will not be affected.