The North Delhi Municipal Corporation and the South Delhi Municipal Corporation have planned an extensive mechanism to manage the solid waste generated in the national capital by setting up solid waste management plants at four locations here. The move is part of the Swachh Bharat mission.
The NDMC, which generates about 3,500 metric tonnes of waste daily, has already started a waste management plant on a trial basis at Bawana and the plant is likely to be inaugurated later this month, while another project of the NDMC is likely to come up on the already overused G.T. Karnal bypass landfill.
The Bawana solid waste management plant that is currently being run on a trial basis is capable of converting 85% of the solid waste generated daily into fuel and compost, which can be reused. The rest 15% of the waste remains non-convertible, which can then be used to make brick chunks for non-sturdy constructions.
Sanjeev Nayyar, Mayor of North MCD, who had recently visited Vienna to understand and study their solid waste management projects, told The Sunday Guardian, “The waste management plant in Vienna is located at the heart of the city. It is a very efficient plant. Though located at the heart of the city, no fumes or foul smell emanate from it. The waste management plant there has achieved 94% efficiency.”
“We tried to understand their technology and would try to implement it here as well. We hope to achieve 90% efficiency in our plants in the near future,” Nayyar said, adding that the problem of landfill in Delhi is acute and there is shortage of space.
Thus, the North MCD is holding discussions and deliberations on setting up another large and efficient waste management plant at the G.T. Karnal Bypass soon, he said. The target is to make the plant 96% efficient, as the landfill there is already being overused, Nayyar added.
The landfill at the G.T. Karnal Bypass had generated a lot of controversy earlier this year with the landfills catching fire every few days, leading to air pollution. “There should not be politics over landfill; it is a matter of serious concern and we are trying to address the problem. We will turn Delhi into an efficient waste managing state soon.” Sanjeev Nayyar said.
The SDMC is also planning to set up two waste management plants in its area on the lines of the NDMC. The SDMC already has a small functional solid waste management plant in Okhla, but Shyam Sharma, the Mayor of SDMC, has accused the Delhi government of lack of cooperation in setting up bigger plants in the area.
Shyam Sharma told The Sunday Guardian: “One of our plants is already functional in Okhla, but we want to set up a bigger plant as the waste in Delhi is increasing and the plant in Okhla is too small to handle such huge waste. But the Delhi government has failed to cooperate with us. We have already written several letters to the Delhi government asking for funds and land, but they have not yet responded, nor are they releasing any funds for the project. They have stalled out projects deliberately.”