Expressing concern over the serious level of air pollution in Delhi-NCR, the Supreme Court issued several guidelines on Wednesday (17 December 2025). The court asked NHAI and MCD to consider temporarily closing or shifting nine toll plazas located on the Delhi border, so that traffic congestion in the city can be reduced.
The Supreme Court termed the crisis of air pollution as a problem that comes up every year and called for effective and practical solutions to deal with this menace. The court amended its interim order dated August 12, 2025, and allowed authorities to take punitive action against old vehicles that do not meet Bharat Stage-6 (BS-6) standards.
However, the court refused to interfere with the Delhi government’s direction to close schools for students from nursery to class five. He said that winter holidays are about to start, so there is no need for any change in this decision.
Supreme Court strict on MCD toll
A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant directed the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to consider temporarily closing or shifting nine toll plazas located at entry points into Delhi in an effort to reduce vehicular congestion at the national capital’s borders. It specifically asked the MCD to take a decision within a week whether these toll plazas can be temporarily closed to streamline traffic flow and reduce vehicular emissions.
The Chief Justice bench said, ‘We have also asked the NHAI to consider the possibility of shifting the nine toll collection booths of the MCD in Delhi to such places where NHAI staff can be deployed and a part of the toll collected by it can be given to the MCD to compensate for the temporary loss.’
The Chief Justice said, ‘In the meantime, the MCD is directed to cooperate on this issue and consider temporarily suspending the nine toll plazas. The relevant decision should be taken within a week and presented on record.
During the hearing, the court was told that the toll collection booths operated by MCD, including the one located on the Gurugram border, were causing long queues of vehicles and people were facing the problem of heavy traffic jams.
‘Tomorrow you will start setting up toll plaza in Connaught Place’
The Chief Justice asked, “Why can’t the authorities say that there will be no toll plaza till January? Tomorrow you will start installing toll plaza in Connaught Place because you want to earn money?” The court said that toll can generate income, but it also increases litigation. He suggested that MCD should make a concrete plan and say that there will be no toll plaza till January 31 next year.
The Chief Justice’s bench rejected the argument that there is no problem of traffic jam in the city. The court said, ‘These things are true. People are facing this every day.
The Supreme Court said, “We have heard the arguments of the counsel with regard to the request for direction to close the schools and conduct online classes. We are informed that the schools for the students from nursery to class five have been temporarily closed and the winter vacation is going to start soon. Therefore, there is no need for the intervention of the court in this matter.’
Have to think about effective solutions: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court stressed the need to effectively implement existing measures instead of merely making protocols. The Chief Justice said, ‘We have to think about practical and effective solutions to this threat.’ He said that although preventive measures are in place, their implementation has been consistently weak.
Considering the impact of pollution-related restrictions on livelihoods, the court directed the Delhi government to immediately verify the construction workers rendered unemployed due to the restrictions and ensure that financial assistance is transferred directly into their bank accounts.
Instructions to transfer money to workers’ accounts
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Delhi government, told the bench that out of about 2.5 lakh registered construction workers, about 7,000 have been verified so far. He assured the Supreme Court bench that the financial assistance will be transferred directly to the bank accounts of the workers.
However, the court cautioned against any irregularities in the process and said that it should not happen that the transfer amount goes missing in the workers’ accounts or goes to some other account. The court also asked the Delhi government to consider providing alternative work to construction workers rendered unemployed due to the restrictions imposed to curb pollution.
What did the Supreme Court say about farmers burning stubble?
The Chief Justice bench said that the problem of air pollution increases every winter. The court asked the CAQM and the administrations of cities in the National Capital Region (NCR) to consider issues such as urban transport, traffic management and providing incentives to farmers to stop stubble burning. The court made it clear that piecemeal measures will not solve the crisis.