People can't be left to die in 'gas chamber', they are suffocating due to pollution: SC

People cannot be left to die in "gas chamber", the Supreme Court observed on Monday while expressing serious displeasure over the failure of the state machinery to prevent stubble burning, and said Delhi-NCR citizens are "suffocating" due to air pollution.

While referring to the pollution level in Delhi, the apex court said that living in the national capital is "worse than Narak (hell)" as air quality is deteriorating year after year and now water pollution has also gone up.

An anguished court said that stubble burning was still going on in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh despite its order prohibiting it and asked as to why the government machineries of these states be not asked to compensate people, who are suffering from diseases like cancer and asthma, for their tortious act.

"Time has gone where we will keep on waiting. Why this is continuously happening?," a bench of justices Arun Mishra and Deepak Gupta told chief secretary (CS) of Punjab who had appeared in the court in pursuance to the summon issued to him.

"As on today, stubble burning is still adding to eight per cent of the pollution in the region," the bench said, adding, "Why we should not impose fine on your state which will be recovered from officials right from top to bottom".

The bench told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, "Should this be tolerated? Is this not worst than internal war? Why people are in this gas chamber? If it is so then you better finish them with explosives. If it goes on like this then it would be better to go rather than suffer from diseases like cancer".

Slamming the Punjab government for their failure to stop stubble burning, the bench said, "This year you have contributed more right from the beginning. Has the state said that let the people die of cancer and we will not bother? Can this be the approach of any welfare state...can you treat people like this and permit them to die".

When the CS of Punjab told the court about the steps being taken by them to prevent stubble burning, the bench said it is the "failure" and "inaction" of the state and there is "no will power" to stop this.

"In the capital of the country, if you will create this kind of situation, how the people will survive. How the country will become a global power if you are not able to check these things," the bench said.

Punjab's CS said the state has distributed Rs 19 crore compensation to around 29,300 farmers who have not burnt stubble in their fields and they are monitoring the situation of crop residue burning with the help of satellites.

"The question is it does not mean that people of Delhi-NCR should suffer from cancer, lung cancer.... Life span of millions of people have being shortened due to this," the bench said, adding, "We all are suffocating in Delhi."