National Green Tribunal raps Mira-Bhayander municipality for openly disposing, burning garbage

MUMBAI: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has rapped the Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation (MBMC) for dumping its wastes on open plots in the region.

The western zone bench comprising Justice V R Kingaonkar and Dr Ajay Deshpande directed the MBMC to deposit Rs 70 crores with the Konkan Commission within six weeks.

The municipality has been dumping and burning unprocessed garbage in the open. Its solid waste management plant at Dhagvi village of Utan, Bhayander (west) was shut down in September 2009 after villagers' protest.

Since then the municipality has been unable to find any alternate location to recycle its wastes. A recycling plant at Versova on the Ghodbunder Road in Thane was rejected by the central government due to its proximity to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park.

The wastes generated in the region since then has been dumped on open plots across the region. The municipality generates around 400 tonnes of waste every day.

Residents of the region where garbage is openly dumped have complained of health issues, including stink, which worsens during monsoon.

Affected villagers formed the Nagri Hakk Sangharsh Samiti (NHSS) which approached the NGT in May this year. Earlier the bench had pulled up the civic administration and the Thane collector for not submitting an affidavit on the status of the waste disposal plant.

On Tuesday, the civic administration told the bench that the new plant would come up at Sakwar village in Virar (east) within 18 months. Villagers here are also against the dumping plant.

MBMC Deputy municipal commissioner Sambhaji Panpatte informed the bench that the tenders for setting up the plant had been floated.

The bench directed the municipality to deposit Rs 70 crore which would later be used for the plant. The next hearing is kept for August 31.