Supreme Court to examine impact of firecrackers on children

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to examine the impact of firecrackers on the health of children in the capital after the Modi government backed judicial efforts to curb air pollution and said it would consider a courtimposed cess or levy on trucks passing through the city.

Executive action on this front could take months and years, court-appointed amicus curie Harish N Salve told the green bench comprising Chief Justice HL Dattu and Justices Arun Misra and Adarsh Kumar Goel at a special hearing. "This is a day-to-day problem," Salve told the court. Trucks from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh carrying supplies to destinations outside New Delhi cut across the city to avoid paying higher tolls on the highways, contributing to the city’s air pollution.

Salve sought the court’s urgent intervention to check the entry of trucks from the two neighbouring states as the first step. However, the top court said it would first examine the National Green Tribunal order passed on Wednesday, imposing an environmental tax of Rs 700 on two-axle diesel trucks and Rs 1,000 on three-axle trucks. The SC also agreed to examine the impact of mass bursting of crackers during Diwali on children, especially toddlers. The court was reluctant to wade into the issue as it would be difficult to ban crackers.