Delhi HC directs MCD to leave airport zone out of new facility ambit

The airport zone comprises the Indira Gandhi International Airport terminals, air traffic control, in-flight catering facilities, and Aerocity

The Delhi High Court has directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to exclude airport zone from the ambit of its proposed tender for setting up Material Recovery Facility (MRF) for managing dry solid waste in Najafgarh. The court further said that Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) is the only authorised body to provide all services at the airport site, including solid waste management.

The court delivered the verdict on Thursday. (HT Archive)

The airport zone comprises the Indira Gandhi International Airport terminals, air traffic control, in-flight catering facilities, and Aerocity.

In a verdict released on Monday, a bench of justice Jyoti Singh held that DIAL is the “exclusive custodian” of the airport site— for providing both aeronautical and non-aeronautical services, further observing that Aerocity forms part of IGIA’s commercial zone and therefore falls within DIAL’s jurisdiction for service provision.

The court delivered the verdict on Thursday, while dealing with DIAL’s petition to quash MCD’s November 2024 tender where the civic body mentioned the airport zone — including Aerocity — in the “Project Area.”

DIAL, represented by senior advocate Rajiv Nayyar, argued that the airport zone — spanning 4,799 acres — was leased to it by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) under the Operation, Management, and Development Agreement (OMDA) in 2006. Under this agreement, DIAL holds “exclusive rights” to carry out the services.

Nayyar submitted that despite DIAL repeatedly informing the MCD about its exclusive jurisdiction over solid waste management in the airport zone, the MCD issued a tender for commercial purposes and unlawfully selected an agency to set up an MRF within the Najafgarh zone, also including airport zone in its ambit.

The MCD, represented by senior advocates, Sanjay Jain and Malvika Trivedi, contested that solid waste management is a municipal function and hence it is the only authority having the exclusive power to undertake the same in Delhi municipal area, including the airport site.

Jain further submitted that the OMDA was merely a private agreement between two parties and does not confer any authority upon DIAL to discharge functions that are otherwise entrusted to the MCD under the constitutional framework and the Delhi Municipal Corporation (DMC) Act.

However, setting aside the MCD’s tender, the court said that it was legally not permissible for MCD to include any part of airport site in the project area for the tender. It also made its December 12, 2024 interim order final, which restrained MCD from processing its tender with regards to the area which fell within the airport.

“Sections 12 and 12A of AAI Act leave no doubt that DIAL is an exclusive custodian of the airport site inter alia to provide aeronautical and non-aeronautical services enumerated in Schedules 5 and 6 of OMDA, respectively, in addition to other functions and obligations. DIAL is carrying out the function of solid waste management at airport site under Rule 4(7) of 2016 Rules read with OMDA, executed by AAI exercising power under Sections 12 and 12A of AAI Act and in the absence of a specific provision under DMC Act vesting this function and obligation exclusively in MCD,” the court said.