Societies may have to dispose own waste

Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said his government is deliberating a law that would make housing societies responsible for getting rid of their own garbage

Mumbai: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis announced in the Assembly on Thursday the state was considering tweaking the Development Control Rule to make the ‘zero-discharge buildings’ regime mandatory for new housing societies. He said the state was deliberating on it and they may amend the laws to implement it.

This means societies will have to shoulder the responsibility of disposing of the waste at its source by having their own mechanism. He also said a team headed by a deputy municipal commissioner will overlook the dumping ground issue, including setting up scientific disposal plants.

While announcing there would be no new dumping grounds allowed in the state and the existing would be replaced with scientific disposal plants, he also announced that the tendering process to set up the ‘waste to energy’ plant at Deonar would be taken in the next three to six months. “We have appointed Tata Consultancy Services to study the feasibility of the plant at Deonar. The actual work of the tendering process may not begin in three months as the report of the consultant is yet to be submitted, but it will be started in six months,” he said.

The issue of the fire at the Deonar dumping ground in January was raised through calling attention by Mumbai MLAs in the assembly. The government said that the interim report of the committee on the fire incident has been submitted to the government and it was open to probe if any irregularities or lapses have taken place in the contract.

Replying to the query raised by BJP MLA Ashish Shelar if the incentives were possible for segregation at source by societies, Fadnavis said the municipal corporations could take a decision on it.

With the chief engineer of solid waste management post vacant, Fadnavis also assured that the post will be filled within the next one month. The additional police commissioner’s report on the Deonar fire will also be submitted to the assembly, Fadnavis told the house.

Fadnavis said although local residents have been opposing the new dumping grounds at Kanjurmarg, Airoli, the government wants to make it clear that the corporations would not be allowed to dump the waste, but they will have to scientifically dispose of it. Fadnavis said the plants at Airoli and Taloja are spread on 32.77 hectares and 38.87 hectares respectively and the lands have been handed over to corporations.