Recently, the Supreme Court, mandated that all vacancies in the State Pollution Control Boards (PCBs) of the National Capital Region (NCR) states be filled by April 30, 2025.

“We make it clear that all States have to endeavour to fill in the important posts urgently. Under no circumstances, we are going to grant them time for filling in all the vacancies beyond 30th April, 2025. The States of Rajasthan, Punjab, NCT of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana will address the issue of filling in substantial vacancies in the State Pollution Control Boards on urgent basis and the outer limit therefor. These States will endeavour to fill in the vacant posts, which are are required to be filled in by directing recruitment, within a period of two months from today”, the Court stated.

A bench comprising Justice Abhay Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih also instructed the Chairperson of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to appear via video conference at the next hearing. The Chairperson is to explain the measures CAQM plans to implement in addressing impending pollution challenges, particularly those arising from stubble burning.

“Today, the situation is that due to a large number of vacant posts in the State Pollution Control Boards, the said Boards have become ineffective for all purposes. Now, the question is what steps the Commission proposes to take. The issue is of a very urgent nature as the State Pollution Control Boards, who have more than sufficient powers to take steps for controlling pollution, are virtually defunct. We, therefore, direct the Chairperson of the Commission to remain present through video conference on the next date and explain to us what steps the Commission proposes to take”, the Court stated.

The Court further instructed the Chairperson to address the steps taken under Section 12(6)(c) of the CAQM Act. This section outlines the Commission’s responsibilities, including developing a framework to identify air pollutants, implementing pollution control measures, conducting research, coordinating with stakeholders, collaborating with technical institutions, fostering international cooperation, and training a specialized workforce to tackle air pollution in the NCR and surrounding regions.

In the previous hearing on July 10, the Court had criticized the Delhi Government for employing contractual employees instead of making regular appointments to the state PCB. The bench had directed the Chief Secretaries of Rajasthan, Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh to file affidavits outlining a time-bound schedule for filling all vacancies.

On Tuesday, the Court reviewed compliance reports concerning the filling of vacant posts in the state PCBs and established an outer deadline of April 30, 2025, for all vacancies to be filled.

The Court observed that there are 395 vacant positions out of 808 in Rajasthan, 204 out of 344 in Delhi, 344 vacancies in Uttar Pradesh, and 173 vacant posts in Haryana. The counsel for Punjab reported that all vacant positions in that state will be filled by December 31 of this year.

During the hearing, amicus curiae Aparajita Singh expressed concerns about the anticipated pollution in the NCR this coming winter, particularly highlighting the lack of adequate manpower to effectively implement pollution control measures.

She emphasized that the Act establishes a framework for tackling air pollution challenges, including the formation of various Sub-Committees as outlined in Section 11. The Court noted that Section 11(3) of the 2021 Act specifically mandates the creation of a Sub-Committee on Safeguarding and Enforcement.

Justice Oka remarked, “This is a sad situation that almost all authorities are not functional.”

The Supreme Court scheduled the next hearing for September 2, 2024, and permitted the Chairperson of the CAQM to submit an affidavit outlining the proposed measures in accordance with the provisions of the 2021 Act.

Case no. – WP (C) No. 13029/1985

Case Title – MC Mehta v. Union of India and Ors., In Re: Number of Vacant Posts in Statutory Pollution Control Boards of Various States