Mounting solid untreated waste crisis a 'disastrous situation': SC

The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed serious concern over the mounting solid untreated waste crisis in the country's capital, calling it a "shocking state of affairs" and a "disastrous situation". A division bench of justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih asked the Delhi government and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi to come up with "innovative measures" to tackle the situation.

Speaking for the bench, Justice Oka verbally observed that "in the MCD area, there are 3,000 metric tonnes of waste (going untreated). By 2027, there would be 6,000 metric tonnes". The bench directed the chief secretary of Delhi to file an affidavit detailing the timelines prescribed under the 2016 rules for the management of such solid untreated waste. It also asked the chief secretary to explain in his affidavit which rules have been complied with and which have not been complied with.

The bench went on to observe "with some degree of sadness, we are recording that in the capital city, every day, 3,000 tonnes of solid waste is being generated, which is not capable of being treated". Justice Oka added that the SC may also consider whether some development activities should be halted so that the generation of solid waste can be controlled. The bench expressed particular concern over 3,800 tonnes of untreated waste being dumped at two sites-Ghazipur and Bhalswa. In a related development, the SC directed UP and Haryana governments to impose a similar ban on use of firecrackers as imposed by the Delhi government.


Earlier this month, the court had directed the Delhi government and other NCR states-Haryana, UP and Rajasthan-to take a final call on prohibiting the use of firecrackers throughout the year. On Thursday, the counsel for Delhi government informed the court that it has decided to impose a complete ban on firecrackers.

While Haryana said it would allow only green crackers, Rajasthan said it has banned firecrackers completely in areas falling in the NCR region. The counsel appearing on behalf of Uttar Pradesh government submitted that the state has decided against banning the firecrackers completely The court Thursday also ordered the states falling in the NCR to constitute teams of various officials to ensure strict compliance with the anti-pollution measures under stage 4 of the Graded Response Action Plan.