The Delhi High Court on Friday sought response of the Centre and the city government on a plea that no centrally air-conditioned buildings, including courts, be used without taking precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Bar Council of Delhi Chairman K.C. Mittal, in his petition, contended that “the cough, sneeze or tear dispersal of an infected person would be in aerosol form” and the “same can be picked, ingested and circulated by the central air-conditioning units”, like the ones installed in the High Court.
He further contended that while droplet infection can be dealt with by sterilisation, once aerosol infection enters the air ducts of the central air-conditioning system, it could potentially infect dozens if not hundreds of persons present in a building.
The High Court has listed the case for further hearing on May 1.
The application was filed in the main petition on air pollution which the Delhi High Court had initiated on its own in 2015 to deal with the poor air quality in the national capital.
