The High Court of Karnataka on Thursday made it clear to the State government that all public transport vehicles and three-wheelers in Bengaluru city would have to be compulsorily run on compressed natural gas (CNG) at the earliest and diesel vehicles kept off the road.

Also, the court cautioned the authorities that it would treat high air pollution in the city as violation of the right to life, which includes the right of enjoyment of pollution-free water and air for full enjoyment of life in terms of the apex court’s interpretation of Article 21 (right to life and liberty) of the Constitution.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice D.H. Waghela and Justice Ram Mohan Reddy made these observations orally during the hearing of public interest litigation petition suo motu initiated by the court based on newspaper reports on high air and noise pollution in the city.

Priority should be for CNG vehicles, restricting entry of goods vehicles into the city, removing diesel vehicles of certain types and preventing use of shrill horns, the Bench told M. Madan Gopal, Additional Chief Secretary, Forest, Ecology and Environment, who was present in the court.

Quoting a public survey finding that impact of pollution in the city on an individual is equivalent to that of smoking 20 cigarettes a day, the Bench questioned why Bengaluru city was backward in checking pollution.

When Mr. Gopal said short-term measures to check pollution were already in place and it would be difficult to implement long-term measures as fixing a timeframe was an issue, the Bench said it could assist the authorities by issuing timeframe for completion of each task, including supply of CNG.

The court adjourned further hearing till April 29 while asking the State to submit an action plan to implement various directions issued by Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) for reducing pollution level.