Forest department here has issued notices to all 18 municipalities of Bijnor district for dumping and burning garbage in the jungle and along roadsides in the protected areas. The department has warned that if the dumping is not stopped, the civic bodies will be booked under provisions of the Forest Act.

However, as none of the civic bodies has responded to the notice, the forest department will issue another notice to them. If they still do not respond, action will be taken under the Forest Act, said a forester.

Incidentally, none of the 18 civic bodies in the district has its own dumping grounds. So they dump the waste in jungles or roadsides. The piles of waste emit a foul smell that pervades the atmosphere. Often they set afire the trash and the resultant flames destroy nearby trees and shrubs. Besides, the smoke adds to the polluted air. Every day, as many as 10 small fires are reported from the entire region and this is certainly not a good sign.

Sources said according to norms, each civic body should have its own dumping land and garbage should be disposed of under solid liquid waste management plan. Under this plan, decomposable and non-decomposable garbage should be collected and segregated. While decomposable waste should be turned into compost, non-decomposable garbage needs to be recycled.

But in Bijnor district, the civic body authorities dump trash on roadsides on the outskirts of various cities. Heaps of garbage can be seen on the outskirts of of Bijnor, Kiratpur, Noorpur, Najibabad, Dhampur, Nahtaur, Nagina, Afjalgarh and Shekot. 

Talking with TOI, chief development officer (CDO) Indramani Tripathi confirmed that the civic bodies had no garbage dumping land of their own. By throwing it on roadsides and forest areas and setting piles of trash on fire, they were also flouting NGT instructions. “We have written letters to civic bodies concerned in this connection several times,” he added.

The CDO recalled that state government had released around Rs 6 crore for this purpose to Najibabad two years ago but civic body failed to purchase land.

 
According to divisional forest officer M Semmaran, “With temperatures rising, the burning garbage can trigger major forest fires. That is why, this menace has to be curbed. Every day, we get information of at least 10 small fires from the entire region and this is certainly not a good sign.

“I have written a letter to all civic bodies saying if they fail to stop dumping and burning garbage in protected forest land and burning it, strict action will be taken under Indian Forest Act against civic authorities.” Semmaran added.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/