Centre
for Science and Environment welcomes the recent Supreme Court
ruling from the three-judge bench headed by Justice BN Kirpal as
momentous and innovative.
The
recent ruling puts the CNG controversy at rest and focuses
entirely on implementation of the CNG order that leaves no
room for further confusion. All niggling issues including
the problem of availability, supply and allocation of CNG,
doubts about CNG technology being experimental, delivery
capacity of the bus manufacturers, have been dealt with
comprehensively and conclusively. The onus now shifts to the
government to get its act together and implement the order.
The Supreme
Court holds the violator of the court order accountable and
imposes heavy penalty to ensure compliance based on the
polluter pays principle. Even the union government has been
fined for obstructing and abusing the process of the court.
This way the court has dealt a lethal blow to the state and
the central governments for carrying on with their mindless
policy of penalizing clean technology. At a time when both
the governments are out to squeeze the small CNG market in
Delhi with harsher taxes, the Court has shown where the
fiscal penalty should be imposed -- on dirty diesel and
promoters of dirty fuel. For the first time in the country a
fine has been imposed on a polluting technology.
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NEW DELHI APRIL 6
2002: The Centre for Science and Environment is jubilant over the
recent Supreme Court order that now rests all controversy over
moving public bus transport to CNG in Delhi and focuses on
implementation. This landmark ruling that came on April 5, 2002
after hearing all parties concerned, is a sharp departure from the
earlier strategy that the Court had followed of giving a deadline
expecting the government to think through and implement the court
order. This time the Supreme Court intervenes to even tell the
government how to implement the CNG order. It's a shame that the
government has once again shown its incompetence in performing even
its administrative role.
The court has given a very clear strategy of phasing in 800 CNG
buses per month from May onwards against the installed production
capacity of 1100 buses per month. The way to make the bus operators
do it is to make them pay for not complying with the court order.
Based on the polluter pays principle the Court has directed the
imposition of a fiscal penalty on those who in defiance of the Court
order have continued to run diesel buses even after the expiry of
the deadline. This is momentous. A retrospective fine of Rs 500 per
bus per day from the date of the expiry of the deadline in January
31, 2002 till May 6 and subsequently a fine of Rs 1000 per bus per
day will be charged until all buses move to CNG. This comes as a
slap in the face of both the state and the central government that
just made the last-ditch effort to stymie the CNG phase-in by
squeezing it with tax hike - the Delhi government is going to such a
ridiculous extent of putting guthka with CNG in the same bracket for
a sales tax hike.
CNG detractors must not be allowed to whip up any more controversy
and public anger on this matter to divert attention. This time the
Court has heard all and dealt with all niggling issues. Clear
direction has been given to all concerned to implement the order.
All concerned government authorities and IGL will have to allocate
more gas. The government of Delhi will have to frame finance scheme
for financing of CNG vehicles from the finance pool to be generated
from the penalty on diesel bus operators. A very strong message has
gone out with the penalty of Rs 20,000 slapped on the Union
government for repeatedly coming to the Court seeking modification
of the Court order. This will now have to stop.
It is most dramatic that the devious attempt of the government to
kill the CNG strategy by tabling the interim report of the Mashelkar
committee to plead that only norms should be prescribed and not
technology has boomeranged on them. The Supreme Court in response
has rejected their plea and at the same time broadened the
jurisdiction of this case beyond Delhi. It has now given a direction
on an alternative fuel strategy, not just for Delhi but for the
whole country. The government will now have to give priority to
transport sector over all other sectors with regard to allocation of
CNG not just for Delhi but in other polluted cities of India as
well. The government will now have to prepare a scheme and a
schedule for introducing CNG, LPG and any other clean non-adulterable
fuels as Bhure Lal committee may recommend.
CSE strongly believes that the way ahead is to implement this order
immediately so that Delhi can move on without wasting any more time
over unnecessary controversies with a more immediate action agenda
to control the deadly pollution. Strong concern for protection of
public health is explicit in the Court ruling. Court has made a very
significant observation in the ruling that as a result of the
various orders passed by the Court air pollution level in the city
has stabilized but even with these efforts particulate pollution
remains 3 times above the national standards. This is the challenge
that the government will now have to take on. The government will
have to drop its saboteur stance and get about the serious business
of implementing policies with enlightened planning. |
