Haryana State PCS

• 05 Jul 2024

Justice Sheel Nagu: Punjab & Haryana Chief Justice

Why in News?

Recently, Justice Sheel Nagu of Madhya Pradesh high court has been appointed as Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Key Points

• He was appointed as Madhya Pradesh high court judge in 2011. His contribution to the judiciary by way of disposal of cases, during his tenure of over 12 years has authored more than 499 reported judgments.

Appointment of HC Judges

• Article 217 of the Constitution: It states that the Judge of a High Court shall be appointed by the President in consultation with the Chief Justice of India (CJI), the Governor of the State.
  • In the case of appointment of a Judge other than the Chief Justice, the Chief Justice of the High Court is consulted.
• Consultation Process: High Court judges are recommended by a Collegium comprising the CJI and two senior-most judges.
  • The proposal, however, is initiated by the Chief Justice of the High Court concerned in consultation with two senior-most colleagues.
  • The recommendation is sent to the Chief Minister, who advises the Governor to send the proposal to the Union Law Minister.
  • The Chief Justice of the High Court is appointed as per the policy of having Chief Justices from outside the respective States.
    • The Collegium takes the call on the elevation.

Haryana Cities Among India’s Most Polluted

Why in News?

According to a report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), Haryana accounted for more than half of India's top 10 most polluted cities in June 2024.

Key Points

• Rohtak was the most polluted among the 251 Indian cities included in the study.
  • In June, Rohtak's average concentration of PM2.5 (tiny inhalable particles) was 116µg/m³, more than twice the safe level of 60µg/m³ set in India.
• In the top 10 most polluted cities in June, Rohtak was featured in the list 28 times, followed by Charkhi Dadri and Panchkula, each appearing 16 times, Ballabhgarh 11 times, and Faridabad 10 times.
• A total of 60 cities appeared on the daily most polluted cities list. Among these, 23 cities made the list at least five times. Only Faridabad is part of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).
• According to the 2021 Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) report by the University of Chicago, India is the world's second most polluted country, where fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) shortens the average citizen's life expectancy by 5.3 years.

Particulate Matter

• Also called particle pollution, a term for a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets found in the air. It causes respiratory problems and also reduces visibility.
• It includes:
  • PM10: inhalable particles, with diameters that are generally 10 micrometers and smaller.
  • PM2.5: fine inhalable particles, with diameters that are generally 2.5 micrometers and smaller.
• Sources of PM:
  • Some are emitted directly from a source, such as construction sites, unpaved roads, fields, smokestacks or fires.

National Clean Air Programme

• It was launched by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in January 2019.
• It is the first-ever effort in the country to frame a national framework for air quality management with a time-bound reduction target.
• It seeks to cut the concentration of coarse (particulate matter (PM) of diameter 10 micrometer or less, or PM10) and fine particles (particulate matter of diameter 2.5 micrometer or less, or PM2.5) by at least 20% in the next five years, with 2017 as the base year for comparison.
• It covers 132 non-attainment cities which were identified by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).