Supreme Court Says Solid Waste In Delhi A Serious Problem, Asks Lieutenant Governor To Constitute Committee

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on August 17 said that solid waste in Delhi is a “very serious problem” and asked the Lieutenant Governor (LG) to constitute a committee to deal with the issue. A bench headed by Madan B Lokur, while stressing that assistance of people of Delhi was required to deal with the problem, said the committee to be set up by the LG should consist of experts from the field, members from the civil society as well as Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs).

Also Read: Authorities In Delhi Do Not Have “Will” To Clear Garbage: Supreme Court

The bench, also comprising Justices S Abdul Nazeer and Deepak Gupta, said the committee should also deal with the issue related to cleaning up of landfill sites at Ghazipur, Okhla and Bhalswa. Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand, appearing for the office of LG, told the bench that she would discuss this issue with the LG and get back to the court within a week. The bench posted the matter for August 27.

The apex court had earlier this month said that Delhi was facing an “emergency situation” due to mountains of garbage. The LG had earlier told the court that his office was regularly reviewing and monitoring garbage disposal plans and action of municipal bodies. The issue of waste management had cropped up when the court was dealing with a matter in which it had in 2015 taken cognisance of death of a seven-year-old boy due to dengue. The victim had been allegedly denied treatment by five private hospitals here and his distraught parents subsequently committed suicide.

Also Read: Waste Management: Single Agency Should Maintain Stormwater Drains, Suggests IIT-Delhi

NDTV – Dettol Banega Swachh India campaign lends support to the Government of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). Helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan, the campaign aims to spread awareness about hygiene and sanitation, the importance of building toilets and making India open defecation free (ODF) by October 2019, a target set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, when he launched Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in 2014. Over the years, the campaign has widened its scope to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and menstrual hygiene. The campaign has also focused extensively on marine pollution, clean Ganga Project and rejuvenation of Yamuna, two of India’s major river bodies.