Faridabad stops dumping waste at Bandhwari landfill after 13 years of use

MCF will manage 900-1,000 TPD through existing plants while expanding capacity with a new Sotai facility and upgraded Pratapgarh plant.

After 13 years of dumping municipal waste at the Bandhwari landfill, the Municipal Corporation of Faridabad (MCF) stopped transporting fresh waste to the site from Friday, officials said, following directions issued by Union minister of housing and urban affairs, Manohar Lal, after his inspection of the landfill on May 28.

The move follows Union minister Manohar Lal’s directions, while Gurugram continues identifying alternative waste processing sites. (HT Archive)

Officials said the move would provide temporary relief to the overburdened landfill, which receives waste from Gurugram and Faridabad and has long faced recurring fires, legacy waste accumulation, leachate ponds, foul stench and pollution complaints.

Faridabad generates 900 to 1,000 tonnes of municipal waste every day. To manage the waste, MCF will rely on its existing decentralised processing plants at Mujheri and Pratapgarh, with capacities of 150 tonnes and 250 tonnes per day, respectively, while expanding processing infrastructure.

Officials said a new 600-tonne-per-day waste processing plant will be developed at Sotai, and the capacity of the existing Pratapgarh facility will be enhanced as part of plans to create an overall processing capacity of around 1,200 tonnes per day. Until the new processing facilities become operational, officials said the city will manage its daily waste using the existing processing infrastructure and available machinery.

MCF additional commissioner Paramjeet Chehal said the proposed facilities are away from residential areas. The tendering process is underway. This internal mechanism will help in handling and processing the city’s daily waste generation,” he said.

Meanwhile, despite repeated calls and messages, MCF commissioner Dhirendra Khadgata did not respond to HT.

Officials acknowledged that similar directions to stop dumping waste at Bandhwari had been issued earlier but were not implemented.

Meanwhile, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) is also identifying alternative locations for processing fresh waste as more than 1.8 million metric tonnes of legacy waste remain at Bandhwari. Officials said a five-member committee has shortlisted a few sites for future waste processing.

During his inspection, Lal also directed officials to clear the legacy waste at Bandhwari within a year and submit daily progress reports.