6 lakh MT of waste, mafia control, poor enforcement choke Gurugram

Once known as the ‘Jungle Road’ for its pristine Aravalli views and wildlife sightings, the Gurugram-Faridabad road has now earned a new name — the ‘Malba Lane’. A decade on, what was once a green corridor has turned into a dumping ground, lined with hillocks of construction and demolition (C&D) waste.

What rules say…

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The Construction and Demolition (C&D) Waste Management Rules, 2016 prohibit dumping of construction waste in public places. Waste generators must keep debris within premises or deposit it at designated collection centres/authorised processing facilities. Local bodies are required to ensure transport and scientific disposal, either directly or through private operators.

Gurugram today is reeling under a mounting debris crisis, with nearly 6 lakh metric tonnes of C&D waste already piled up and another 2,000 tonnes generated every day. With no regulated pickup system, a strong ‘malba mafia’, and only 15% of daily waste being treated, the city has been mockingly dubbed ‘Malba Gram’.

Activists say the situation is spiralling out of control. “We have been sounding the alert for years but nobody took cognisance. The Aravallis are drowning in concrete. Look at the Gurugram-Faridabad road — waste mafia trucks dump concrete every day and nobody dares to stop them. Authorities once in a while pick debris from the forest but have never curbed the mafia. The jungle is dying,” said Jatinder Bhadana of Save Aravalli Trust.

The menace isn’t limited to one road. Ghata, Sector 29, Saraswati Kunj, Golf Course Road Extension, and the Southern Peripheral Road have also turned into massive dumpyards. Sector 29 alone holds nearly 3 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste, blamed for choking drains, worsening waterlogging, and polluting air in adjoining areas.

Ironically, Gurugram was lauded by NITI Aayog in 2020 for its work in C&D waste management. Under then Municipal Commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh, the Sector 29 dump was cleared. But the city is now back to square one.

The key reason lies in weak waste handling contracts. In 2019, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) outsourced collection and enforcement to private firm Pragati, which was initially praised. However, the contract was suspended in 2022 after an RTI activist’s complaint. Though the inquiry remained inconclusive, it was never renewed. Since then, repeated attempts by the MCG to streamline pickup have failed. Meanwhile, the city’s only processing plant at Basai handles just 300 tonnes per day — far below requirement.

MCG Commissioner Pradeep Dahiya, who recently inspected the Sector 29 dump, admitted the challenge but promised action. “Construction and demolition waste management is a big challenge but we have started getting things in order. Contractors are being roped in for pickups and we are working to increase treatment capacity. Our target is to clear the city in about three months,” he said.

Adding to the problem, residents are resisting MCG’s plans. Of the five new dumping and processing sites identified at Babupur, Basai, Baliyawas and Daultabad, locals are opposing four.