Nagpur: Pulling up authorities over the alarming spike in air pollution, the Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court on Thursday ordered the registration of a suo motu Public Interest Litigation (PIL), after pollution levels in Nagpur shockingly surpassed those of Mumbai and Pune last month. The court acted swiftly following media reports exposing the hazardous air quality enveloping the city.
A division bench comprising Justice Anil Kilor and Justice Rajnish Vyas observed that Nagpur’s air quality has been deteriorating at an “alarming pace,” fuelled by rampant construction activities, unchecked dust pollution, and seasonal winter inversion that has trapped toxic particulate matter dangerously close to ground level.
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Data from the Central Pollution Control Board revealed that on November 21 at 5 am, several neighbourhoods recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) above 250, a level officially categorised as severe and directly harmful to human health. The judges noted the gravity of the crisis, stating that the situation was “escalating day by day” and demanded urgent intervention to avert a looming public health emergency.
Taking a stern stance, the bench appointed Advocate Shantanu Khedkar as amicus curiae and directed him to prepare and file the petition within four weeks. The court also acknowledged media documentation of the crisis, highlighting the extent of respiratory distress and health impacts faced by residents.
The move marks the first judicial intervention into Nagpur’s worsening environmental conditions this winter and is expected to push civic authorities, pollution control agencies, and government bodies to enforce stricter compliance, improve monitoring mechanisms, and implement dust-control regulations at construction sites.
With the PIL set to summon detailed reports from multiple agencies, the stage is now prepared for an in-depth probe into both air and noise pollution, signalling a decisive shift toward accountability and action in the city known as the “Tiger Capital,” now choking for clean air.
