Mohali aims to clean up legacy waste in a year

With the municipal corporation (MC) so far completing bioremediation of 2,77,490 (67%) cubic metres out of the total 4,13,441 lakh cubic metres of legacy waste spread over 10 acres at the Phase-8B dumping site, the civic body is aiming to completely process the waste within one year, said a senior MC official.

Recently, CM Bhagwant Mann has also sought the progress and functioning report of the civic body, including revenue, expenditure and the status of the ongoing processing of the remaining waste at the said site.

The report, according to officials privy to the matter, was submitted with the CM on Tuesday during a meeting with MC officials.

The problem of legacy waste has been consistently bringing the city down in the Swachh Survekshan rankings. While it managed to climb 31 spots to secure the 82nd position among 446 cities with a population over 1 lakh in 2023, the sheer volume of the waste still remains an eyesore.

Other than this, the corporation is having a tough time managing garbage collection in the city due to six non-functional resource management centres (RMCs) out of the total 14 in the city.

Garbage collectors, thus, are dumping city waste at the remaining eight RMCs, inviting resentment among residents who complain of a perpetually stinking and obnoxious environment in residential areas due to overflowing garbage.

Major chaos had erupted in June after the then local bodies secretary Ajoy Sharma directed the MC to stop dumping waste at the Phase-8B landfill in the wake of Punjab and Haryana high court’s directions to adopt bioremediation measures at the site, where a mountain of legacy waste is visible even at a distance.

National Green Tribunal (NGT) is also closely monitoring the site.

The high court order translated into MC being forced to handle the entire garbage at the RMCs itself, causing the centres to overflow with waste.

Notably, around 100 metric tonnes (MT) of garbage was being dumped at the Phase-8B site every day, which eventually overburdened the eight functional RMC points across the city.

In August, a Panchkula-based contractor was hired temporarily to process the waste collected at all the RMCs. Both the corporation and the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) had agreed to pay around ₹1,090 per tonne to the private contractor. While Mohali produces over 100 MT of garbage every day, the said contractor at present is collecting and processing 40 MT at a private plant in Lalru on a daily basis.

The civic body has now invited fresh tender for the collection of 100 MT garbage daily for which work order is likely to be allotted in November to the lowest bidder.

“We are aiming to make all the RMCs functional by November end. Moreover, we will soon allot the work order to collect 100 MT garbage daily from the city with the condition that in case the population increases with time causing a hike in garbage production, the same contractor will increase his collection capacity. This contract will be allotted for around four years after approval by the local bodies department,” a senior MC official said.

However, the MC commissioner said the maintenance work at the RMC points has been expedited and the collection and processing issues would be resolved soon.