The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Friday took action against a private contractor for dumping debris in the wetlands of Bhandup.
Environmentalist Stalin Dayanand on Thursday caught a truck while dumping solid waste in a nullah near Chamunda Nagar. The director of NGO Vanashakti, Stalin informed the police, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board office and the BMC. He said, “The truck driver fled the scene. However, he was later summoned at the local police station.” Senior civic officials told Free Press Journal that the contractor has been fined Rs 20,000 and asked to clear the debris. A senior civic official said the BMC has also initiated legal proceedings against him.
Meanwhile, environmentalists have blamed the BMC for not being able to protect the creeks and wetlands of the city. Stalin said the salt pans of Bhandup have been witnessing illegal encroachments during the lockdown. He alleged that garbage dumping is a way to fill the wetlands and make space for shanties in the near future.
Stalin said it’s obvious that the truck had brought the debris from the eastern side of Bhandup to dump it on the western side. “This is an organised racket that has been operating for some years now,” he alleged, adding that the BMC has maintained that it will not remove debris as the land belongs to the salt department.
Meanwhile, the green warrior had also written on this issue to the environment department of the BMC. In response to his letter, the deputy municipal commissioner had said that the issue of concrete water slurry vehicles falls in the jurisdiction of the chief engineer (storm water drains) and the issue of cesspool vehicles will be handled by the chief engineer (solid waste management). The complaint therefore has been forwarded to both these departments.
