Gopal Rai writes to L-G on dumping of waste

New Delhi: Delhi development minister Gopal Rai on Friday urged lieutenant-governor Anil Baijal to direct the NDMC to allow dumping of garbage from the Azadpur wholesale market at the Bhalswa landfill site. In a letter to Mr Baijal, the minister said that after the civic body imposed a ban on dumping at Bhalswa, the government had decided to dispose garbage from the market at Tikri Khampur.

However, dumping was stopped at Tikri Khampur after protests by locals, he said. “Following the ban, it was decided to dump the garbage from the market at a land in Tikri Khampur, but locals started protesting the move. The Delhi Dehat Manch also gave a memorandum to me to register their protest,” the minister said.

Mr Rai said that the piling of waste could become a serious problem if necessary steps were not taken to resolve the issue. “I request you (the L-G) to direct the NDMC’s commissioner to allow dumping of garbage from the market at the Bhalswa landfill site until further arrangements are made to dump the same to ensure the smooth functioning of the Azadpur market,” the minister said.

The North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) had put a ban on dumping at Bhalswa after its height crossed the permissible limit. Recently, the Ghazipur landfill site in East Delhi had partially collapsed triggering a fatal accident.

The permissible height for a garbage dump is 20 m. Every day, 2,500-3000 metric tonnes of garbage was being dumped at the Ghazipur site, officials said. The East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) manages the landfill site at Ghazipur that was started in 1984 and is spread over 29 acres.