Tribunal asks civic body CEO to appear virtually on next hearing

In an ongoing case against improper management of waste on the premises of new Sabzi Mandi, Kara Bara Chowk, located on Bahadurke Road, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has asked the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Municipal Corporation, Ludhiana, to appear virtually on the next date of hearing and assist the Tribunal as nobody appeared in the previous hearing.

An affidavit was filed in the NGT on August 19 that about 1,700 tonnes of legacy waste was cleared and at two points approximately 900 tonnes of legacy waste was yet to be cleared.

Learned counsel appearing for the Respondent No 4 submitted that as on Wednesday, there was about 800 tonnes of legacy waste, which was lying on the mandi premises and had to be cleared from the market.

The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) had also submitted its affidavit to the NGT where they mentioned that the site of the wholesale Sabzi Mandi located on Bahadurke Road, Ludhiana, was visited by an official of the Punjab Pollution Control Board on July 17 along with Subash Kumar, Deputy District Mandi Officer, and Rumail Singh, Secretary, Market Committee. They found huge amount of legacy waste and fresh municipal solid waste, having approximately quantity of 15,000 MT, dumped at the dumping site on the mandi premises.

In the report, it was mentioned that the MC, Ludhiana, has made mandi premises as secondary waste collection point to collect the municipal solid waste of nearby areas. As informed by MC employees present at the site, 40-45 garbage vehicles are dumping waste at the point.

The corporation has also constructed/installed 8 number static compactors at site for compaction of solid waste and the same were in operational condition. This waste through compactors/ packed containers is further shifted by the civic body to the Tajpur Road MC dumping site. But, in spite of the operational compactors, still huge amount of fresh waste is dumped at the site.

The Mandi Board has removed some legacy waste from some locations of the mandi premises but the same has been shifted to the dump site available on the market premises. Hence, no in-situ management has been done at the site by the board.

The board has not made any arrangement for in-situ management/ composting of its daily organic waste till date and mixed waste is lying at the site. Some fruit/vegetable waste was also found dumped along some roads inside the mandi. No burning of solid waste was observed at the site during visit.

Densely populated residential houses are situated adjoining the dumping site of the Mandi Board. Domestic hazardous waste such as sanitary pads and diapers were also found dumped at the site.

The NGT mentioned in the orders that report of the PPCB revealed that the legacy waste is lying on the mandi premises and no proper in-situ management/composting of daily generated waste has been made till now. Though the MC has been impleaded as Respondent No 3, it failed to appear in the matter. Hence, the NGT directed the Chief Executive Officer of the corporation to appear virtually on the next date of hearing and assist the Tribunal on November 17.