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Clear Dadumajra dump site by May or face contempt proceedings: HC to Chandigarh MC

By, Chandigarh
Jan 22, 2025 08:56 AM IST

An HC bench, while hearing a clutch of petitions seeking removal of garbage from the dumping site, made it clear that if not cleared by then, the official would face contempt proceedings. The court also expressed serious concerns over the MC’s handling of waste management.

The Punjab and Haryana high court (HC) on Tuesday told the Chandigarh municipal corporation to clear the garbage dump at Dadumajra by May.

Chandigarh counsel submitted that significant progress had been made in clearing the legacy waste. The first two garbage dumps have been cleared and assured the court that the third dump, which has emerged recently, would be removed by May 2025. (HT File)
Chandigarh counsel submitted that significant progress had been made in clearing the legacy waste. The first two garbage dumps have been cleared and assured the court that the third dump, which has emerged recently, would be removed by May 2025. (HT File)

An HC bench, while hearing a clutch of petitions seeking removal of garbage from the dumping site, made it clear that if not cleared by then, the official would face contempt proceedings. The court also expressed serious concerns over the MC’s handling of waste management.

The city produces approximately 450-500 metric tonnes of solid waste daily.

The bioremediation of the second garbage mountain

(8 lakh MT) is on and is likely to be complete anytime now. But a third mountain, holding about 1.25 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of garbage, has emerged amid this.

Spread across 45.11 acres, the landfill is located right in the middle of the residential area, with people of Dadumajra, Sector 38 West, Sector 25 and Dhanas Colony, being the most exposed. The residents of Dadumajra are voicing strong opposition to the setting up of an integrated solid waste management plant in their locality, asking the MC to find an alternative site in Chandigarh or its surroundings. The ministry is also yet to issue environmental clearance for setting up the plant.

During the hearing, UT’s counsel submitted that significant progress had been made in clearing the legacy waste. The first two garbage dumps have been cleared and assured the court that the third dump, which has emerged recently, would be removed by May 2025.

One of the petitioners, who is appearing in person in this case, Amit Sharma, had contested these claims, arguing that similar assurances and deadlines have been repeatedly given over the past decade. While the MC claimed to have cleared previous dumps, leachate continues to flow from them to date, which they allegedly try to conceal by covering with mud, he had submitted.

The court, while deferring the hearing for February 27, also asked Sharma to file related documents, where, as per him, the MC officials supplied wrong information to the court. Sharma is seeking perjury proceedings against the officials.

He said the MC has been misleading the court for years by falsely claiming compliance to solid waste management rules. He also accused the MC of withholding information, which was subsequently admitted to by the MC before the court.

As per the affidavit filed by the petitioner before the court, a report, purportedly prepared by an IIT waste management expert, was in fact created by an electrical engineering department and contained over 150 handwritten financial alterations. The report did not conform to solid waste management regulations and was yet another deliberate attempt to mislead the court, he had claimed.

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