Solid waste management: NGT appoints court commissioner for inspection of site

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, August 31

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has taken a crucial step towards addressing the solid waste mismanagement problem in the city by appointing advocate Bhanwar Pal Singh as court commissioner.

Tasked with conducting a comprehensive site inspection, Singh will provide an unbiased assessment of the situation, helping to resolve discrepancies in previous reports. The Punjab Pollution Control Board will cover the costs of the commissioner’s visit.

This development follows applicant-cum-member of public action committee (PAC) Kapil Dev’s 2023 complaint, which exposed widespread violations of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, across 23 locations. Despite initial assurances from a joint committee, he raised concerns on falsified claims regarding land allocation and project progress.

With a new report due before the next hearing on December 9, the NGT has given respondents four weeks to respond. Kapil remains optimistic, having gathered video evidence on social media to supplement the commissioner’s findings and bring truth to light.

Citing one of the location, Kapil said garbage was being dumped into the village pond and on both sides of the road near Gill village by the MCL, panchayat and private hoteliers/marriage palaces. On this, the joint action committee had told the NGT that and land had been identified in Gill village for dumping garbage and a grant of Rs 2.20 lakh had been received under Swachh Bharat Mission and work had been started from May 3.

But applicant Kapil told the NGT that the joint committee had submitted a false report as no work had been started at the location and garbage in huge quantity was lying at the same places. The complainant had also submitted eight photographs to prove his point.

The PAC visited two locations after the hearing and made videos for evidence in this regard so as to show the same to the court commissioner. Some videos made earlier by Kapil Arora and Kuldeep Singh Khaira would also be submitted.