Air pollution a silent killer; impacts health of people, nation's economy: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court on Thursday highlighted the seriousness of air pollution and the threats it poses to public health if left controlled [M/s Vodafone Idea Ltd. v Kerala State Pollution Control Board]..Justice N Nagaresh observed that apart from the effects on health, air pollution has a cost on the nation's economy as well."Air Pollution is a silent killer. The air pollution levels in India are considered as high. Exposure to particulate matter can cause deadly illnesses like lung cancer, stroke and heart diseases. The health impacts of pollution have a cost on the nation’s economy also. Sectors such as agriculture, industry, power, households and transport, all contribute to particulate matter emission", the Court said in its judgment.The Court held that tackling the issue on a multi-sectoral and multi-jurisdictional level by both the Central and State governments is necessary to fulfil the directive principle enshrined under Article 47 of the Constitution of India."The air pollution challenge in India is multi-sectoral and multi-jurisdictional. The Union and States and the Central and State Pollution Control Boards are taking on the challenge in all possible ways. Improvement of public health is a directive to the State under Article 47 of the Constitution," the judgment stated..The Court was considering a plea by Telecom Service Provider, Vodafone Idea, seeking directions to the State Pollution Control Board to refrain from implementing any restrictive orders on the operation of diesel generator sets without any specific direction in writing from Central government in that regard.The issue was regarding the backup diesel generators used at the energy switching centres of Vodafone Idea's telecom towers. It was Vodafone's case that its energy switching centres cannot be treated as an 'industrial plant' which is subject to the restrictions under Section 21 of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.Vodafone's petition assailed an order issued by the Kerala State Pollution Control Board in 2020, mandating deduction of emission by 30% of diesel generator sets above 500 KVA..The State Pollution Control Board stated that emissions from the DG sets are considered to be a major contributor of particulate matter in the atmosphere, and hence the same needs to be reduced to meet the target set by the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.It was argued that the Board, being a statutory body created under Section 4 of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, is vested with comprehensive powers to prevent, control and abate air and water pollution and does not require any directions from either Central or State governments to discharge its functions.The Central Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change supported the arguments of the Board..The Court concurred with the respondents on all fronts.It noted that the NCAP Plan was in line with the observation of the National Green Tribunal that the timeline to reduce the air pollution by 30% needs to be shortened and the target of reduction need to be increased, having regard to the adverse effect on public health. "In India, diesel generators are widely used for continuous power backup. When diesel burns, it emits unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides or Particulate Matters (PM) into the air. According to the World Health Organisation, the safety limits of these Particulate Matter is 23 micrograms per cubic metre. Diesel generator sets cause the density to increase up to 300 micrograms per cubic metre," the Court observed.Therefore, it held that the Board was amply justified in regulating more polluting units and machinery first, and that there was no illegality or ambiguity in the order issued by it."The Board's Order therefore is intended to achieve a laudable objective. It does not violate any of the fundamental or statutory rights of the petitioner", the Court said whigle dismissin the petition..The petitioner was represented by advocates P Sathisan and Dona Augustine.The respondents were represented by the standing counsel of the Board, T Naveen and Central Government Counsel M Jayakrishnan Vazhoor..[Read Judgment]