SC approves panel to deal with waste management

The apex court asked members of the panel to deal with the matter seriously and in a “dedicated manner” that could become a “model of cleanliness” for other metropolitan cities.

The Supreme Court on Thursday approved the high-powered panel to deal with the issue of solid waste management in Delhi.

The Supreme Court to ordered the committee to meet “for sufficient hours” on all five working days of the week for the first two weeks to understand the magnitude of the problem. (HT PHOTO)

The court asked its members to deal with the matter seriously and in a “dedicated manner” so that the task carried out by them could serve as a “model of cleanliness” for other metropolitan cities.

A bench of Justices Madan B Lokur, S Abdul Nazeer and Deepak Gupta ordered the committee, constituted by the lieutenant-governor, to meet “for sufficient hours” on all five working days of the week for the first two weeks to understand the magnitude of the problem. The first meeting of the committee is on September 4.

The bench said the committee members should work in “harmony “with the sole objective of fulfilling the terms of reference. It will on September 19 take up the matter once again to check on the progress of the panel.

According to the terms of reference, the committee would go in-depth into all the aspects of solid waste management in Delhi, including cleaning up landfill sites at Ghazipur, Bhalswa and Okhla and frame a workable and implementable policy.

A report in this regard may be submitted in three months, the court said.

The L-G had set up the panel after the top court chided him and the civic agencies for failing to solve garbage crisis in the Capital.