In a stinging indictment of the failure of the government to check the toxic smog choking the capital, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday suggested that if the government cannot ensure clean air to its citizens, it can at least slash the 18% GST charged on air purifiers. “Breathing clean air is a fundamental right. It cannot be a luxury,” the court declared.

These came during the proceedings of the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) case filed by an advocate named Kapil Madan, who had claimed that the air purifiers had to be considered “medical devices” under the 2017 Rules, thus reducing the taxation rate from 18% to 5%.

“Every Citizen Requires Fresh Air”

The Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela was extremely dissatisfied with the “emergency situation” prevailing in the capital. They pointed out that in a town where people take approximately 21,000 breaths a day, the present levels of air pollution are nothing short of “involuntary” catastrophes.

“This is the minimum that you can do. Every citizen demands fresh air. If you are unable to provide that, then reduce the GST. This is an emergency, and you are requested to provide an exemption even for 15 days,” observed the bench, directing the lawyer for the Central government to return after seeking instructions by 2:30 PM today.

Delhi Wafts Under Stage IV Restrictions

The intervention by the court comes as Delhi-NCR is already under the strict Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) Stage IV. Although there has been a slight improvement in the AQI levels on Wednesday morning, with the index categorised under the “Very Poor” category at 336, as compared to “Severe” at 415 on Tuesday, the entire city has been engulfed in a thick layer of smog and fog.

The crucial monitoring stations, namely ITO (374) and India Gate (354), measured dangerous levels, leading the government to enforce stiff bans on non-essential diesel vehicles as well as work-from-home policies at 50% capacity in offices.