Delhi Government has recently banned the BS III Petrol & BS IV Diesel vehicles in Delhi, on the Direction

of Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), due to poor air quality in the national capital. Only
BS6 vehicles, emergency vehicles, those on government duty or election work, and the ones supplying
goods can operate normally.

The quality of air in Delhi has been deteriorating day by day. Government has launched Graded
Response Action Plan in stages to control and improve the quality of air in Delhi. Current curbs are under
Stage 3 of the said plan. The penalty for the vehicles with BS-III Petrol or BSIV Diesel, both commercial
and private, under Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 is Rs. 20,000.

The efforts by the Delhi Government to protect the environment give the Right to Life and Liberty, under
Article 21 of the Constitution of India, to the residents of Delhi. Article 21 encompasses within its ambit,
the protection and preservation of environment, ecological balance free from pollution of air and water,
sanitation without which life cannot be enjoyed. 1

At the same time the government is also violating Article 21 by snatching away the right to livelihood
under the ambit of Article 21 of cab/ taxi drivers of whom the daily bread is earned through this.

Salmond gave 5 elements of Rights, two of which are (i) “The Person of Inherence” is the person who
owns the right and the (ii) “Person of Incidence” is the person against whom the Right is Available. Man
is both creator and moulders of his environment.2 The person of inherence and the person of incidence
both are the residents of Delhi. The right protects the interest of the residents and if the residents use
the banned vehicles they are violating the rights of themselves as well as others by depriving them of
the right to clean air.

The horizon of Article 21 has expanded over the years, covering the most possible rights of individuals
protecting their right to life. Through line of judgements, courts have planted the right to clean
environment. In Intellectuals Forum v. State of A.P., there was a conflict between the protection of
environment and social development. The court held that, “The responsibility of the state to protect
the environment is now a well accepted notion in all countries. It is this notion that in International Law
gave rise to the principle of state responsibility for pollution emanating within one's own territories. This
responsibility is clearly enunciated in the United Nations Conference on Human Environment, Stockholm,
19723 to which India was a party.”4

Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) has shown that Delhi is on ‘severe’ category for a long time now. The state
has the duty to give its residents the clean and healthy environment. The ban is a step towards
accelerating this right. According to a Business Standard report, “to regulate the output of air pollutants

1
Subhash Kumar v. State of Bihar, (1991) 1 SCC 598 : AIR 1991 SC 420.
2
Judicial Activism to Judicial Adventurism for the Protection of Environment: An Analysis in the Context of
Expansive Meaning of Article 21 of Indian Constitution, 24 ALJ (2016-17) 225
3
UN International Conference on Human Environment, 1972 (June 5-16, 1972).
4
Intellectuals Forum v. State of A.P., (2006) 3 SCC 549
from the internal combustion engine and spark-ignition engine equipment, including motor vehicles” the
Centre has notified norms called BS or Bharat Stage emission standards. 5 BS-VI norms a

Intellectuals Forum v. State of A.P., (2006) 3 SCC 549

1. Article 21 of the Indian Constitution Right to pollution-free water and air

5
https://www.outlookindia.com/national/delhi-imposes-ban-on-non-bs-vi-diesel-vehicles-under-grap-to-tackle-
air-pollution-all-you-need-to-know-news-234939