Garbage mishandling in vegetable market: Act in two weeks, appear in next hearing, NGT tells Mandi Board DGM

Taking cognisance of the non-compliance of recommendations of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) by the Punjab Mandi Board for handling and processing of garbage within the Wholesale Vegetable Market in reopened petition of members of the Public Action Committee (PAC), the Chairperson, Bench of the NGT, has directed the DGM of the Mandi Board to remain present during the next hearing to assist the Tribunal.

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Er Kapil Arora and Gagnish Khurana said keeping in view the unscientific way of handling garbage and deliberate inaction on selling of single-use plastics fearlessly on a daily basis by the Mandi Board at the wholesale market, situated on Bahadurke Road, they had filed a petition before the Tribunal in 2023 and the NGT had formed one committee, with the nodal agency as the PPCB, to file the report.

“After completing the process, the committee filed one report before the NGT which justified the allegations made by us and issued recommendations and directions to the Mandi Board to handle the garbage and process on the premises as per the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016,” Arora said.

Further, the PPCB ordered the Mandi Board to strictly implement ban on sale and usage of single-use plastic within the board area.

However, the Mandi Board failed to comply with the directions issued by the PPCB and continued to dump garbage and burning of garbage at various places in the mandi area, which was resulting into environmental damage as well as unhygienic conditions and suffocating environment for inhabitants of nearby localities.

Er Vikas Arora and Mohit Jain said after reopening of the case by the Green Tribunal, they filed evidences of repeated deliberate and blatant violations by the Mandi Board by going against recommendations of the PPCB.

The DGM of the Punjab Mandi Board filed the reply mentioning that the Department had signed an MoU with the MC and one static compactor had been installed to collect and transport the garbage to the Tajpur primary dump. Further, an awareness drive is being conducted to prevent usage of single-use plastic.

Arora said: “During hearing, the counsel for the Mandi Board said a composter had been installed and there was no fire incident after 2022 in the vegetable market, to which we objected that the machine installed by the MC was not a composter but a compactor and thus, the mandi board had failed to follow the SWM Rules, 2016, in which it is clearly mentioned that bulk generators of garbage had to segregate and process the garbage on their premises."

DGM trying to mislead Tribunal: PAC member

“Incidents of garbage are frequent in the vegetable market and the DGM is trying to mislead the Tribunal. Further, single-use plastic is still being sold openly and the Mandi Board has failed to act on it,” Jain said.

Considering objections made by them, the Bench directed the DGM to take action within two weeks on issues raised in objections filed by petitioners and file report. On directions of the Bench, the counsel of the Mandi Board submitted that the DGM would remain present before this court during the next hearing to assist the Tribunal.