NEW DELHI: Mayor Shelly Oberoi on Tuesday outlined the ward-wise measures planned to tackle the indiscriminate dumping of garbage and construction and demolition (C&D) waste in open areas across the city. She announced the launch of a special campaign and awareness drive in all 12 zones, which will also help in controlling dust.
Under the campaign, the deputy and assistant deputy commissioners will inspect each ward to assess the situation.
Junior engineers from the works and maintenance department, along with sanitary inspectors, will also conduct separate checks and submit daily reports on the actions taken to clear the garbage and C&D waste dumped on roadsides. “They need to certify that the wards are actually cleaned. We are using various platforms, including media, and requesting people to support our action,” Oberoi said at a press conference.
The mayor highlighted that illegal dumping near construction sites, on roadsides, and behind houses inside colonies had become a common practice, contributing significantly to dust pollution in Delhi.
She added that in 2021, Supreme Court issued an order directing Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to implement dust control measures and create C&D waste dumping sites in the city.
“Both Delhi govt and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) have always taken important steps to reduce pollution every year,” Oberoi claimed. “Last year, as per CAQM’s directions, we identified C&D waste dumping sites and covered them with sheets. This year, too, I have held a detailed meeting, which was attended by the MCD commissioner, the additional commissioners from the environment management services and engineering departments,” she said. “Wherever C&D waste is dumped, efforts will be made to remove it immediately,” she added.
Oberoi discussed the steps taken to streamline the complaint filing process on the 311 app and the need for introducing the chatbot. MCD is also focusing on enhancing the monitoring of complaints related to street cleanliness and ensuring that people dispose of their waste only in the designated garbage lifting vans.
“As we approach the festive season, it is our top priority to ensure that Delhi is clean and beautiful, and that citizens’ complaints are addressed in a timely and effective manner,” said Oberoi. A third-party audit has also been suggested to increase the app’s efficiency and transparency.
Leader of the opposition in MCD Raja Iqbal Singh questioned AAP govt and the mayor, asking why they had suddenly become concerned about the city’s sanitation and pollution.
Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor claimed that the city’s sanitation and sewer systems had collapsed completely due to the inactivity and corruption in the AAP-run MCD. “Amid the festivals of Navratri, Durga Puja and Dussehra, the people of Delhi are troubled by piles of garbage everywhere,” he alleged.
Delhi Congress president Devender Yadav said it had become an annual “ritual” for AAP govt to launch a sanitation drive on the eve of every festival season to remove the garbage accumulated over the past many months and gain some easy mileage. But the drive fizzles out after the initial flourish, he alleged.
