MCG stops bio-mining payments amid waste management scam

The MCG has faced repeated criticism over its handling of waste, with numerous reports of financial irregularities and mismanagement emerging

Gurugram: Soon after a Hindustan Times report on Monday revealed that an agency had collected full payments from the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) without disposing of any refuse derived fuel (RDF), the MCG Commissioner has ordered the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) engineering team to halt all bio-mining processing bills until disposal certificates are thoroughly verified, officials said.

The move comes as part of a broader effort to address the systemic issues plaguing Gurugram’s waste management system. (Parveen Kumar/HT PHOTO)

This directive mirrors last year’s investigation where it was found that RDF did not reach cement factories, prompting similar scrutiny of disposal locations this time.

The Hindustan Times report highlighted large-scale discrepancies in the waste management process, where an agency was paid in full despite failing to dispose of RDF as required. This disclosure prompted immediate action from the MCG’s top officials to prevent further financial mismanagement and ensure accountability in waste management practices.

MCG Commissioner Narhari Singh Bangar said that all bio-mining payments would be suspended until a thorough verification of disposal certificates is completed. “We will ensure that every payment is thoroughly checked before being issued. Physical verification will be conducted to ascertain that the waste has indeed been processed and disposed of correctly. MCG teams will visit the cement factories where the RDF is sent, will prepare a report and after verifying them I will clear the bills,” he said.

The MCG chief said they had installed CCTV cameras in and around Bhandwari landfill and they have connected all the weighing bridges with the GMDA portal. “All these cameras are working, and they are working as a deterrent to corrupt practices,” he said.

The move comes as part of a broader effort to address the systemic issues plaguing Gurugram’s waste management system. The MCG has faced repeated criticism over its handling of waste, with numerous reports of financial irregularities and mismanagement emerging. The latest HT exposé has added fuel to the fire, highlighting the urgent need for reform and stringent oversight.

Vaishali Rana, a Gurugram-based environmentalist, welcomed the MCG’s decision to halt payments and verify disposal certificates. “This is a positive step towards ensuring accountability. All bulk waste generators must perform in-situ treatment of their wet waste to reduce the load on the landfill. This step will show accountability, will check where exactly the waste is going, what quality of waste is going out of the landfill, whether it is actually RDF or not. A welcome step in the right direction to tackle the Bandhwari landfill issue,” she said.

The MCG’s decision to halt payments and verify certificates is a crucial step towards restoring public trust and ensuring effective waste management in Gurugram. The authorities are expected to implement more stringent measures to prevent such discrepancies in the future, thereby safeguarding the environment and public health.