Six spots along Ggm-F’bad road turn into illegal garbage dumping sites

The door-to-door garbage collection has also been hit across the city since last Thursday over non-payment of dues to waste collection concessionaire Ecogreen Energy. Civic officials said issue with the concessionaire has been resolved and Ecogreen has resumed operations on Thursday
At least six spots along Gurgaon-Faridabad Road have turned into illegal dumping sites since over a month and residents from nearby areas alleged on Thursday that despite writing to the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG), no action has been taken to stop the illegal activity.Acknowledging the problem, MCG officials said owing to the strike by transporters, waste was not being dumped at the civic body’s Bandhwari site and private contractors are instead dumping them on the roadside.

Kusum Sharma, a resident of Suncity Township in Sector 54, said the stretch towards Faridabad from Rajesh Pilot Road has become the new garbage dumping site. “Many vehicles dump household waste and construction debris along the stretch. The rotting garbage is raising an awful stink and it is becoming difficult to travel on the road. Regular monitoring, research and adaptation of waste management systems are necessary to tackle this problem efficiently and effectively,” she said.

Sharma said lack of proper waste management infrastructure is leading to waste dumping along roads. “Inadequate waste management systems, including limited access to waste collection services, recycling facilities and disposal sites, contribute to illegal dumping . When legal options are limited or expensive, the public resort to illegal methods. Lack of awareness and education among the public regarding health hazards of illegal dumping is another reason,” she said.

Ruchika Sethi Takkar, founder member of “Why Waste Your Waste”, a civil society movement for a zero waste city, said fresh dumping sites have come up only due to the negligence of the civic agency. “The local malba transporters continue to create an environmental disaster with their reckless and indiscriminate dumping of construction and demolition waste in the eco fragile zone along Gurgaon-Faridabad Road. The inert waste lying on the sides of the road not only pose a traffic hazard but also create an impervious layer, preventing monsoon water from seeping into the soil,” he said.Joginder Singh, former president of the residents’ welfare association, Sector 57, said local vendors selling construction material around residential areas use tractors to remove debris from construction sites. “Most residential colonies are witnessing large-scale demolition and construction activities, generating a massive quantities of waste. The municipal corporation of Gurugram should consider designating a temporary C&D site per ward and keep a check on tractor trolleys for compliance,” he said.

MCG officials said their enforcement wing has visited the stretch on Thursday to identify the dumping spots and have directed teams to clear them at the earliest. “We have hired a new vendor to collect waste and construction debris dumped by private contractors. Instead of taking it to the Basai C&D plant, they dumped it on the roadside at odd hours,” said Vishal Garg, executive engineer, MCG.Garg said they are planning a permanent resolution, and are in the process of getting private operators to comply with the C&D waste management rules.