Chandigarh, Nov 16: Punjab Transport Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar on Saturday announced the implementation roadmap for the state’s hit-and-run compensation scheme, even as the Supreme Court prepared to take up a separate plea on stubble burning that has intensified air pollution across Delhi-NCR.
Bhullar said the compensation mechanism—approved in 2022—was designed to ensure financial support for victims when the vehicle involved in the crash cannot be traced. “Families should not be left without help only because the offender could not be identified,” he noted. Under the scheme, ₹2 lakh is payable in cases of death and ₹50,000 for grievous injuries caused by unknown vehicles.
While the state moved ahead with the long-pending compensation plan, attention remained fixed on the Centre and neighbouring states as the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the stubble-burning matter on Monday. The Bench, led by Chief Justice B.R. Gavai with justices K. Vinod Chandran and N.V. Anjaria, had earlier agreed to hear the plea on November 17 after seeking detailed updates from Punjab and Haryana.
“Let Punjab and Haryana governments respond on steps taken to control stubble burning,” the CJI had said at an earlier hearing, underscoring concerns that seasonal farm fires were worsening already hazardous air quality.
The court is examining the issue in the long-running M.C. Mehta pollution case. On November 3, it asked the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to file an affidavit outlining the measures it has taken to stop conditions in Delhi-NCR from deteriorating further. The Bench noted that authorities “must act proactively and not wait for pollution levels to reach a severe stage.”
During recent arguments, amicus curiae A.D.N. Singh drew the court’s attention to media reports stating that several air-quality monitoring stations in the capital were not functional during Diwali. “There are newspapers after newspapers saying that monitoring stations are non-functional. If the monitoring stations are not even functioning, we don’t even know when to implement GRAP. Out of 37 monitoring stations, only nine were functioning continuously on the day of Diwali,” she told the Bench, urging the court to seek clearer data and a formal action plan.
Responding to the concerns, Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati assured the Bench that the agencies involved “will file the required report.”
The developments came weeks after the top court allowed the sale and use of green firecrackers in Delhi-NCR during Diwali under strict conditions. The CJI-led Bench on October 15 said the relaxation—permitted for specific hours on Diwali and the previous day—was allowed only between October 18 and 20 and would apply “on a test-case basis and only for the period specified.”
Bhullar said the hit-and-run relief plan would run parallel to the state’s efforts to respond to pollution directives. “We must strengthen public-welfare schemes while also addressing wider environmental responsibilities,” he noted.
