New Delhi, Nov 3 (IANS): The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Friday directed the chief secretaries of the states where the Air Quality Index (AQI) has dropped to poor, very poor, and severe categories to take immediate remedial action.

The NGT issued this directive while hearing a case in which it had taken cognizance of the online air quality bulletins of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for various cities from October 20 to November 1.

The tribunal ordered the chief secretaries to submit an action taken report before the NGT on or before the next hearing scheduled for November 10.

“The chief secretaries of the states where the AQI has dipped to severe, very poor and poor categories are directed to take immediate remedial action and submit action taken report before the tribunal on or before the next date of hearing,” the tribunal said.

It also issued notices to the Chairman of the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), Member Secretary of the CPCB, the National Task Force through its Head Secretary, and the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).

Earlier in October, the NGT had issued notice and sought action taken reports from various authorities, including Delhi chief secretary, Environment Ministry, and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).

The NGT initiated suo motu proceedings after taking into account media reports highlighting the worsening AQI in Delhi and the violations of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), an official had said.

The green panel had noted that the residents of Delhi are facing various health problems due to this issue.