HC summons BMC chief on 'inaction' to curb air pollution; report flags breaches at new court site

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The Bombay High Court on Monday reprimanded authorities over failure to effectively curb air pollution in Mumbai and summoned the civic commissioner and Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) member secretary to explain "inaction" on the issue.

A court-constituted committee, in its report, has flagged grave violations of anti-pollution norms during demolition of existing structures at the site in Mumbai's Bandra area where a new HC complex is to come up.

A bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad directed Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner Bhushan Gagrani and the MPCB member secretary to appear before it on Tuesday.

The court gave the directive while hearing a bunch of petitions raising concerns over the worsening air quality index (AQI) in the financial capital.

During the hearing, the bench perused an inspection report submitted by a court-constituted committee which pointed to a complete lack of monitoring at pollution-prone sites with several locations failing to adhere to guidelines issued by both the BMC and MPCB.

"We have formed, prima facie, the opinion that municipal corporation and member secretary of MPCB should personally explain inaction on the part of the concerned officers," the court said.

It also noted that anti-pollution steps taken by authorities came only after the court took suo motu (on its own) cognisance of poor air quality in Mumbai.

The committee inspected 44 sites across Mumbai and Navi Mumbai and flagged discrepancies in AQI readings displayed on the government's Sameer app, stating that the differences between official data and third-party applications appeared "substantial".

The report also found grave violations of anti-pollution norms at the Government Colony, Bandra (East) demolition site where a new Bombay HC complex is proposed to come up.

Large-scale demolition was carried out with no dust-control measures, leaving debris and dust openly exposed. There were no barricades, wet coverings, sprinklers or smog guns. Gas cylinders were used for steel cutting in open areas abutting public spaces, creating serious safety and fire risks, the report highlighted.

The bench, while noting no one should go scot-free, directed authorities to issue notices to persons concerned.

The (proposed HC) site lacked tin sheets, tarpaulin or jute coverings, and had no air quality monitoring devices, the committee said in its report.