New Delhi: A fire broke out at Ghazipur landfill site in east Delhi on Monday (June 12), officials said. A call about the incident was received around 1.30 pm, they said. A total of 13 fire tenders were rushed to the spot along with a robotic machine to control and douse the blaze, a senior official of the Delhi Fire Service said.
In March 2022, a massive fire broke out at the dumping yard of the landfill, leading to a huge cloud of smoke enveloping the region and neighbouring areas.
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Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai had last year launched a 9-point action plan to prevent incidents of fire at landfill sites.
The plan involved construction of a peripheral road around the dumpsites to facilitate movement of vehicles, patrolling teams and fire tenders and a 4-metre high boundary wall with barbed wire fencing to prevent unauthorised entry into the dumpsites.
Under the plan, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has been directed to involve an agency for segregation of waste being dumped at the landfill sites to prevent unauthorised entry of ragpickers.
Perforated high-density polyethylene pipes will be installed to prevent the accumulation of the highly flammable gas and a dedicated surveillance squad will keep a strict vigil over the activities going on at the dumpsites.
According to experts, organic waste dumped in a landfill produces methane when it rots. In hot weather conditions, methane catches fire spontaneously and the blaze spreads as it feeds on combustible material like textiles and plastics, they said.
According to the Delhi Fire Service officials, 13 fire tenders are at the spot.
The cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, added the officials.
The area was filled with huge clouds of smoke enveloping the area and other regions.
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(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – theLGBTQ population,indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the currentCOVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water,SanitationandHygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fightmalnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health,adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues likeair pollution,waste management,plastic ban,manual scavengingand sanitation workers andmenstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India wheretoiletsare used andopen defecation free (ODF)status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched byPrime Minister Narendra Modiin 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
