Patiala: 35K MT of freshly collected waste piles up at new dump

Tribune News Service

Ravneet Singh

Patiala, August 24

After a meeting with a joint team comprising the representatives of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), and the Deputy Commissioner, the Municipal Corporation has decided to carry out bioremediation of over 35,000 metric tonne of freshly collected garbage lying adjacent to the Chhoti Nadi.

The MC also aims at speeding up the process of remediation of garbage lying adjacent to the Sanauri Adda, which has been delayed for a long time.

The dump adjacent to the Chhoti Nadi has been a nuisance to the residents living nearby.

The MC has a number of material recovery facility (MRF) centres, where garbage is collected and segregate, and pits to make compost, but these are inadequate to handle the large amount of garbage generated in the city daily. Moreover, only two of the six MRF centres are functional.

The bioremediation of the legacy waste lying adjacent to the Sanauri Adda has been going on since July 2020. The MC had allotted the tender to Akanksha Enterprises. The work was supposed to be completed at a cost of Rs 6.86 crore in 16 months. The contractor was required to segregate 1.75 lakh MT of garbage dumped over 8 acres.

Meanwhile, the MC said it aimed at utilising its MRF centres to manage about 120 tonne of city waste generated every day, but could not keep them running. As such, it started dumping the garbage along the Chotti Nadi. At present, over 35,000 MT of garbage waste has collected near Chotti Nadi, which, officials said, included waste that flowed into the MC area during the recent floods and the trash dumped by people on their own.

Municipal officials said, “The private company, which was tasked with bioremediation of the legacy waste, is yet to complete the work. It is yet to clear about 15,000 MT of garbage. Among other reasons, the recent rainfall has delayed the project as the waste needs to be dried for remediation.”

Certain officials said the MC would start its own process to clear the newly formed dump adjacent to the Chotti Nadi. They added, “We will initiate our own process to clear the site. We have our machines for the purpose, which will be used in the project.”

While the MC has been dumping all the city’s waste at the Chhoti Nadi site for a long time, officials claimed the pile included freshly produced waste in the city, that brought from areas outside the MC limits and the garbage flowed into the city in the recent floods.

There have been repeated incidents of fire at the dump, causing health issues to residents of the nearby areas.

What officials claim

While the MC has been dumping all the city’s waste at the Chhoti Nadi site for a long time, officials claimed the pile included freshly produced waste in the city, that brought from areas outside the MC limits and the garbage flowed into the city in the recent floods.

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#Environment #Pollution #Punjab Pollution Control Board PPCB