The report examined the cities of Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Shimla, and Varanasi.
The National Green Tribunal has sought a response from the Centre and nine state pollution control boards along with the Delhi Pollution Control Committee on a study cited by a newspaper alleging severe impact of poor air quality on mortality rates across 10 major Indian cities.
The green body was hearing a matter where it had taken suo motu cognisance of a newspaper report, which quoting a Lancet study said that approximately 33,000 deaths annually were linked to air pollution levels that exceed the World Health Organization guidelines.
The report examined the cities of Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Shimla, and Varanasi.
In an order passed on October 15, a bench of NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava said, "As per the news item, the study's findings show that even cities previously considered less polluted, such as Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Chennai, are significantly affected and it is alleged that this is largely due to emissions from vehicles, industrial activities, and construction dust."
The bench, also comprising judicial member Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi and an expert member, said that the news report claimed that children, the elderly, and individuals with pre-existing health conditions were particularly susceptible to the adverse effects of air pollution.
"It is also alleged that exposure to high levels of particulate material or PM2.5 and other pollutants leads to male and/or female infertility and air pollution can lead to diminished sperm quality, hormonal disruptions, and higher miscarriage risk," the bench said.
The tribunal observed that the report raised substantial issues relating to compliance with environmental norms.
It impleaded as respondents or parties the secretary of the Union Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change, member secretaries of Central Pollution Control Board and DPCC, and pollution control boards of Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh.
"Issue notice to the above respondents for filing their response/reply by way of affidavit before the tribunal at least one week before the next date of hearing (on October 23)," the tribunal said.