Waste dumping at the location of three dhalaos that were shut in Jangpura Extension is continuing, especially at odd hours of the day to avoid detection, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) told the National Green Tribunal (NGT). It said signage was installed at the sites and private concessionaires were directed to depute staff around the clock.
The civic body said that to compensate for the closure, a portable compactor transfer station (PCTS) was set up at Pant Nagar to manage waste locally.
In an affidavit submitted on April 22, MCD said: “That it has been noticed that sometimes residents or people dump the garbage at these closed dhalaos of H&D block during odd hours. In that respect the concessionaire has been directed to keep watch and ward and make it immediately clean on a regular basis. However notice board has also been displayed at these closed dhalaos informing to general public that the garbage collection has been completely stopped at these dhalaos and a PCTS has been made operational near JE (Works) Store in Pant Nagar for garbage collection in place of these dhalaos.”
In February, MCD informed the NGT of the closure of dhalaos H, D and P/Q in Jangpura Extension, on a 2023 plea filed by Jangpura Extension Residents Forum RWA that contended that inadequate waste management was creating a health hazard.
In its affidavit, MCD said it was planning another PCTS at blocks H and D of the locality. “High tension electricity lines of BSES crosses these sites. Matter has been taken up BSES for shifting of these lines underground and requisite amount also deposited with BSES,” MCD said.
MCD has been shutting dhalaos across the city since 2021, and repurposing the structures to set up milk booths, resting areas for sanitation staff, material recovery facilities, stores, mini public libraries, senior citizens centres, charitable dispensaries, and subsidised meal points.
In April 2023, Delhi chief secretary Naresh Kumar set a December 2024 deadline to shut all dhalaos in the city, and replace them with material recovery facilities (MRFs) across the city where waste could be segregated properly and recycled. The process is likely to be completed this year, officials said.
Experts, however, said that the closure of dhalaos necessitates a proper channel for residents to dispose of waste, and said that until adequate MRFs are in place, waste will remain unsegregated and end up at landfill sites or waste-to-energy plants.
“We need to strictly enforce segregation at the household level, which is still not happening. Dhalaos were a point where waste pickers could segregate waste and if these are being shut, we need alternatives. Mini material recovery facilities (MRFs) are needed, and in large numbers, to ensure this waste is managed adequately,” said Bharati Chaturvedi, founder and director of the waste management NGO Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group.
Leave a Reply