The Supreme Court lambasted the Delhi government for the daily generation of 3,000 tonne of untreated solid waste. The apex court described it as a “shocking state of affairs” in Delhi, and sought government’s explanation from the chief secretary.
A bench comprising Justices A S Oka and Augustine George Masih pulled up the Delhi chief secretary over the compliance of Solid Waste Management Rules 2016. On November 11, the court had directed the chief secretary to call a meeting of all the stakeholders, including the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, to discuss the issue of implementation of the 2016 Rules. But nothing happened.
The chief secretary was asked to file a better affidavit by January 27, 2025, on the compliance of solid waste management rules.
The court said the generation of 3,000 tonne of untreated solid waste had resulted in illegal dumping. The apex court also expressed concern over 3,800 tonne of untreated waste being dumped at two sites in Ghazipur and Bhalswa and said the Delhi government had to take steps to tackle illegal dumping and stopping fires there.
Irked by the attitude of the Delhi government, the court reacted by saying: “Perhaps someday this court will have to take a call of stopping some kind of developmental activities in the city so that generation of solid waste can be controlled.”
The top court directed the Delhi government to bring all the stakeholders together and file a common report before it laying down the timelines for reporting compliance with the provisions of the 2016 Rules.
