The Supreme Court announced today, Friday, November 22 that it will review next week whether to ease some rules, particularly those affecting schools, that are already in place in Delhi-National Capital Region (Delhi-NCR) under the Graded Response Action Plan IV (GRAP IV) to address pollution levels in the national capital region.
A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih stated that the implications of GRAP IV are quite severe.
The bench made the comment after parents of some children filed a petition with the Supreme Court challenging the suspension of physical classes and the implementation of online classes for schoolchildren, reports Bar and Bench.
In Delhi-NCR, the schools are currently closed. Students are now compelled to take online classes due to extreme air pollution in the national capital.
The petitioning parents said that not everyone has technology available at home for their children's virtual classes.
The bench responded by saying, "We will consider whether this STAGE IV is to be reduced.”
The bench was hearing a matter addressing pollution in Delhi, specifically the actions taken by authorities in Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh to reduce stubble-burning events.
In the hearing before, the bench urged that Stage IV measures under the GRAP be implemented strictly. It also asked affected state governments to order the closure of physical classes for all school children.
“Not all households have technological systems to join school virtually”
In today’s hearing, Senior Advocate Meneka Guruswamy, representing a group of parents, stated that the presumption underlying the school shutdown is that the air inside the homes is cleaner.
"We don't have the technological system to join the school virtually. We need help from court. There are parents who are drivers," Guruswamy submitted.
"Your lordships may allow those parents who want to send their students to school. The poor in this country will send their child to nearby schools," she told the bench, when asked for suggestions.
However, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Archana Dave stated that, while the state understands the concerns highlighted by the parents, the GRAP-IV will have an equal impact on all children.
In addition, Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan stated that the matter concerns the buses used to transport students to school.
"I am sorry to say but the poor parents in this country don't send their children to school via buses. They send them to neighbourhood schools," Guruswamy responded.
The bench said it would consider the issue on December 2.
