Come October and November, Delhi’s air turns into a toxic chamber. Visibility drops, schools are forced to shut, and doctors report a surge in respiratory illnesses. A few years ago, even the Chief Justice of India admitted that his own disabled children were suffering because of the poisonous air.

That confession spoke for millions in the National Capital Region who are condemned to breathe poison for at least two months every year, if not more. The immediate trigger is no secret. Farmers in Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh burn the stubble left behind after the paddy harvest to clear their fields quickly for the wheat crop.

The Supreme Court has been seized of the matter for years, but its........

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