Opposition to Turbhe waste project grows, garbage blockade threatened

After local residents staged a protest in May, alleging that the dumping ground had already turned the area into a “gas chamber”, local corporators are stepping up the pressure on the municipal administration

NAVI MUMBAI: Opposition to the proposed ₹2,192-crore waste-to-energy project at the Turbhe dumping ground is gathering momentum. After local residents staged a protest in May, alleging that the dumping ground had already turned the area into a “gas chamber”, local corporators are stepping up the pressure on the municipal administration.

Local residents staged a protest in May, alleging that the dumping ground had already turned the area into a “gas chamber” (HT Photo)

Shiv Sena corporator Suresh Kulkarni warned that garbage vehicles would be blocked from entering the dumping ground if the tender process for the proposed waste-to-energy project was not halted. His colleague, Aniket Mhatre, also from the Sena, has separately alleged irregularities in the tendering process and demanded a high-level probe into the contractor’s selection.

Kulkarni has submitted legal representations to the Maharashtra government, Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC), CIDCO and the MPCB, demanding that the project be shifted to an alternative site.

“We are not opposed to the project. We only want it located away from residential areas. Around 2 lakh people live here, and there is also an industrial belt,” Kulkarni said. He proposed a 25-acre plot owned by CIDCO about 2km away.

“For the last 15 years, many people have suffered from TB and asthma. Do we now want to bring a plant here and create the risk of cancer? Why should it be in the middle of a residential area?” he asked.

Kulkarni has also sought the detailed project report (DPR), tender details, IIT Bombay review and MPCB approvals. He said the process of inviting objections and suggestions from the public for the tendering process was conducted before the civic elections, when the NMMC was under administrative control.

“Local representatives were not taken into confidence. There must be vested interests involved. Officials wanting this project should live here with their families. If the project is good, take it to another location,” Kulkarni said.

The project will be executed under a 23-year public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement, with NMMC holding a 26% stake.

Meanwhile, residents and other stakeholders have met NMMC commissioner Kailas Shinde, urging him not to issue a work order for the project and seeking a joint meeting to discuss relocation.

Corporator Aniket Mhatre has demanded a stay on the project, alleging that the contractor awarded the project, currently undertaking sweeping work for NMMC, lacks adequate waste-processing experience.

“A company doing only sweeping and cleaning work is being given such a technically complex waste-processing project. Where is its experience in processing?” asked Mhatre.

He also asked why NMMC had accepted a bank guarantee from a cooperative bank, not a nationalised bank, as specified in the tender. Also, he alleged, DPR approvals were absent when the tender was finalised and NMMC material recovery facilities were being handed over without the contractor first establishing infrastructure.

NMMC has rejected allegations of irregularities and says the project will not be shifted out of Turbhe. It claims the project is not hazardous to residents’ health and is necessary to address environmental problems. It also said the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2026, and CPCB norms require local bodies to undertake scientific waste management.

According to NMMC, the facility will process 1,500 tonnes of waste daily, and generate 27 MW of electricity, besides Bio-CNG, biochar and an advanced leachate-treatment plant. The civic body said this would help eliminate legacy waste at Turbhe and reduce odour and pollution.