EDMC plea seeks alternative landfill sites

The East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) on Friday moved an application in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) seeking urgent directions to the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for allotment of land to be used as alternative landfill sites.

A Bench headed by NGT Acting Chairperson Jawad Rahim directed the DDA to file its reply before April 23.

Citing “saturation” of the Ghazipur landfill site, the civic body moved the application seeking directions to the urban body to hand over the land at Sonia Vihar and Ghonda Gujran.

“The only available site in the EDMC jurisdiction, the Ghazipur landfill site, which was fully saturated way back in 2000, continues to get 1,600 metric tonnes of waste on a daily basis even 17 years after scheduled closure. This is an alarming situation since gases trapped at the site are a ticking bomb, which, if an explosion takes place, will result is cataclysmic repercussion for the thousands of people who live in close proximity thereto,” read the petition.

Highlighting the urgency of the situation, the plea further read, “Already deaths have occurred due to landslips caused recently in the landfill, which has already touched 65 metres in height, roughly 40 metres more than the permissible or advisable landfill site height. All experts who have been consulted in this regard have clearly stated that no reparation work on this site is possible if continued dumping occurs.”

“The only reparation, including composting, biostabilisation and conversion into biodiversity park can only take place if this landfill site is closed for good,” the plea added.

‘Unfortunate for Delhi’

The green panel had earlier directed the Delhi government and the civic bodies to submit action plans for identifying alternative landfill sites. The Bench had further said that it was “unfortunate” that people in the Capital had to die under piles of garbage.