Chalks out plans to upgrade garbage disposal, fire-fighting operations
Mumbai : Facing the wrath of corporators, civic chief Ajoy Mehta on Thursday chalked out the BMC administration’s plans to upgrade the city’s garbage disposal and fire fighting operations, so that incidents like the fire at Deonar dumping ground do not occur again.
The Deonar dumping ground fire that lasted four days resulted in thick fog that brought the entire Tilak Nagar-Govandi-Chembur area to a standstill.
While accusing the administration of inefficiency, Rais Shaikh, Samajwadi Party leader demanded that civic officials should be identified for showing lack of responsibility in response to the fire that led to its increase. Speaking at the BMC’s general body meeting, corporators alleged that the Fire Chief delayed the fire brigade’s response saying it is the responsibility of workers employed at the dumping ground to deal with fire on the location. Corporators also alleged that the Fire Chief responded only after Mehta’s orders.
Meanwhile, Ajoy Mehta has set up a Deputy Municipal Commissioner, K V Acharekar-led enquiry team to look into the fire and submit a report. Special provisions have been made in the budget this year to set up fire control centres around dumping grounds, for quicker response. While the BMC also plans to come up with a systematic method for scientific disposal of waste, similar to the bio-reactor set up at Kanjurmarg.”
Shaikh pointed out an IIT-led study – ‘Technical proposal for methane gas capturing at Deonar dumping ground’ – which found that Deonar dumping ground has accommodated 12.7 million metric tons of waste, emitting methane, which is known to be 21 times more poisonous than Carbon dioxide. Mehta has assured speedy scientific disposal of this waste.
The study has captured the topology of the dumping ground for estimating volume of existing waste and it also assessed the slope stabilization of the waste dumped in Deonar. While it helped identify the areas within the
dumping site that have a high potential for generation of Methane, it has estimated that the dumping ground has accumulated 12.7 million metric tons of waste that has never been rid of properly.
Rais Shaikh, who belongs to the Deonar area said, “Mumbai has the least capacity for systematic waste disposal and management, pegged worse than provisions in most third world countries.”
