NEW DELHI, June 30 — India’s fuel bill, roughly $137 billion for crude imports in the last financial year, now has a new point of attack: the footpath. The Supreme Court ruled on June 19 that citizens hold a fundamental right to walk, and that this right includes safe, marked and properly maintained footpaths that take priority over motor vehicles. The court registered the matter on its own motion as “Re: Fundamental Right to Walk and Footpath.” It sent the judgment to three Union ministries and the Law Commission.
The ruling flows from Article 19(1)(d), read with Articles 19(1)(a), (b) and (c) and Article 21, the court held. The timing matters.
The Prime Minister has asked citizens to cut their use of petrol and diesel. Data shows India imported most of its crude oil in the 2024/25 financial year, and road transport accounts for about 12% of the country’s energy-related carbon dioxide emissions. A joint study by the International Energy Agency and NITI Aayog warns that figure could double by 2050 if growth continues as it has.
So the judiciary and the executive have arrived at the same place from opposite directions, officials noted. Both point to the footpath.
Step outside any Indian home, whether in Delhi, Bhopal, Coimbatore or a tier 3 town, and try to exercise that right or honour that appeal. Walk a short distance to a milk shop, a school gate or a Metro station. As often as not, there is no footpath at all, or it is broken, encroached upon, parked over, or it ends at a crossing no sensible person would attempt.
The resident does what the street quietly demands and starts a scooter, hails an auto, or gives up on the trip. This is where India’s fuel problem meets the pavement. The court’s ruling and the government’s appeal now face the same test: whether the country can build the infrastructure that makes walking a real alternative to burning fuel.
The answer will show up in import bills and in the air.
