Fire at Patiala dumping site stirs political slugfest

The fire at the garbage dump located on Patiala-Sanaur Road and resultant smoke and stink emitting from the location has snowballed into a political issue. The dump has existed for over 55 years, has long been one of the city’s major civic issues.

A remediation plant was installed at a cost of Rs 6.8 crore to tackle the health and environmental hazards caused by the dump.

Waste was filtered, converted into compost for agricultural use, and residual waste was sent to cement and other factories. Thousands of tonnes of garbage spread across roughly 6.5 acres of land were successfully treated. However, the contract between the remediation company and the Municipal Corporation ended in mid-2022, following which the Corporation failed to operate the plant without government support. Although machinery worth over Rs 3.5 crore is still available at the dump site, it now lies unused and is turning into scrap.

Punjab BJP Mahila Morcha President Jai Inder Kaur, after personally visiting the site following public complaints regarding the ongoing fire and smoke for the past three days, addressed the media with this information. This problem was significantly addressed by former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh during his second tenure, said Kaur.

“To eliminate the garbage dump, my father, Captain Amarinder Singh, had set up this remediation plant so the Municipal Corporation could continuously process waste into compost and prevent the formation of massive garbage heaps. Sadly, due to negligence by the Corporation and apathy by the Punjab Government, the plant has remained shut since mid-2022,” she said.

“Valuable machinery worth crores is rusting away at the dump site, while new garbage mounds have started forming once again. Currently, around 140 tons of garbage are being dumped daily, but no effort is being made to process or convert it into compost,” Kaur added.

For the past three days, a large portion of the dump has been on fire.

Kaur alleged that it may be an illegal attempt to dispose of waste in violation of National Green Tribunal (NGT) guidelines. Despite receiving several complaints, the Corporation made no effort to extinguish the fire, prompting her to inspect the site herself and file a formal complaint with the NGT.

She pointed out that this is not the first time a fire has broken out at the dump, further emphasizing that the fire and the resulting toxic smoke have severely affected residents of Rangay Shah Colony, Tej Bagh Colony, Markal Colony, Sheesh Mahal Colony, Satya Enclave, Gopal Colony, Chhota and Bada Araiyan Majra, Jagdish Colony, Sanauri Adda, Teha Basti, Dhillon Colony, and many other surrounding areas.