The Bombay High Court on Wednesday reportedly expressed alarm over the Maharashtra's Mumbai surpassing Delhi in pollution levels, air quality shocking while asking authorities how they were not losing sleep over the “emergency situation”.
During the hearing, Justice Kulkarni reportedly observed that Mumbai was failing to capitalise on its geographical advantages, including its sea breeze and open spaces.
The bench also flagged reports of Mumbai surpassing Delhi in pollution indexes and noted that visibility in the city had fallen below 500 metres on Tuesday, the Bar and Bench reported.
Also Read: How pollution in Delhi surged on Dussehra night
“This is shocking. The city has a sea breeze coming, which has a lot of open spaces, the whole openness of the sea, still we are facing this... You should see to it that Mumbai skies are clear," the Bench added, as quoted by the publication.
Mumbai’s air quality index (AQI) has remained between 150 and 200 over the past week, according to aqi.in.
Justice Kulkarni also questioned how enforcement officials could sleep peacefully while lakhs of citizens were facing what he described as an emergency situation.
The bench expressed displeasure over the failure to secure prior permission for music systems used in processions, along with undertakings to comply with prescribed decibel limits. It also pointed to the continued bursting of firecrackers on busy public streets.
"No action on the issue of prior permission to use music systems in the processions being obtained, with an undertaking to comply with the decibel limits. Also, burning of firecrackers on busy public streets is not being controlled. There appears to be routine violations of the orders passed by this Court," it observed.
The court on Wednesday reprimanded civic authorities, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) and the police for failing to implement its directions on air and noise pollution, particularly during festivals and religious processions.
A division bench was hearing a suo motu Public Interest Litigation (PIL) concerning pollution. The judges expressed concern over violations of court orders regulating sound systems and the bursting of firecrackers on public streets, as well as the authorities’ failure to take timely measures to inform citizens about the restrictions.
HC raps BMC over firecrackers
In its written order, the bench criticised the slow pace of implementation of its earlier directives, stating that even basic preliminary requirements remained unfulfilled.
The court also pulled up the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the MPCB for failing to issue public notices about its October 15 order prohibiting the bursting of firecrackers in public places, including streets, lanes and footpaths.
The bench noted that neither authority had taken steps to publicise the ban through newspapers, electronic and social media, or other platforms, despite being directed to do so.
Delhi pollution spikes ahead of Diwali
Hour-by-hour readings showed pollution levels in Delhi rising sharply on Tuesday evening as Dussehra effigies were burned, while similar weather conditions on the two preceding nights had not triggered a comparable spike.
A further rise in pollution is possible in the coming weeks as Diwali approaches, with firecrackers potentially being permitted more widely this year in light of the Supreme Court’s observations earlier this month.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant called for a “pragmatic and practical” approach to regulating firecrackers, cautioning that people could view overly restrictive measures as coercive. The court linked the Delhi-NCR case to a nationwide matter before a bench headed by Justice MM Sundresh, which had cleared “next-generation” laris, or joint crackers, across the country on September 30.
(With inputs from Karuna Nidhi and Binayak Dasgupta)