New Delhi: During an inspection of the Okhla landfill that towers like a toxic mountain, lieutenant governor VK Saxena on Monday conveyed his concern over the declining pace of municipal solid waste (MSW) bioremediation at the site and other waste disposal facilities across the city.
As per a statement released by LG’s office, “Since the time the LG took charge in May 2022, municipal solid waste started getting disposed of at a rate of 1.41 lakh metric tonnes per month and rose to 6.5 lakh MT by May 2023 within a year.”
However, during his Monday visit, it came to light that the average disposal, which had gone up to about 22,000 MT per day, has fallen to about 20,000 MT per day, raising concerns about efficiency in the disposal system.
Blaming the ‘slow down’ on the AAP govt, the LG office note said, “It may be noted that the LG withdrew himself from the exercise of supervising the disposal of MSW after the former chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, got the Supreme Court to stay the NGT order that appointed him the chairperson of the high-level committee for cleaning and rejuvenation of river Yamuna on July 11, 2023. The NGT also appointed the LG as chairperson of the high-level committee to monitor the management and disposal of MSW in Delhi, which in turn was also challenged by AAP govt.”
The LG’s office further said, “Despite the fact that there was no stay given by the SC in this matter, which remains pending, the LG voluntarily took a back seat in the matter of MSW.”
Reacting to the allegation, AAP lashed out stating, “For 15 years, the BJP govt did nothing as mountains of garbage continued to grow unchecked. Despite this, we have reduced 80%of the legacy waste at the Bhalswa site in just two years while work is on at a rapid pace at Okhla as well.”
Officials informed that the MCD aimed to dispose of 20 lakh MT of MSW at the three sites over the next one year and another 10 lakh MT during the year after that. Meanwhile, the LG has asked MCD to complete the process of disposing of all the 30 lakh MT of garbage in a single year, rather than spreading it over two years.
