Delhi: The national capital’s never-ending struggle with its towering garbage dumps has once again come under scrutiny, with authorities extending the deadline to clear the sprawling landfills. This is the fourth time the deadline has been extended. Earlier, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) had set a target of December 2024 to clear the landfills, but this has now been pushed back to December 2028. However, the issue has taken on a sharper political tone in recent months, especially as Assembly elections loom closer.
Recently, the Supreme Court has also taken serious note of Delhi’s garbage crisis. On December 19, the apex court described the daily generation of 3,000 tonnes of untreated solid waste as a “disastrous situation” and a “shocking state of affairs.”
A bench comprising Justices AS Oka and Augustine George Masih pulled up Delhi chief secretary Dharmendra for non-compliance with the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. The court expressed its dismay at the lack of coordination between the Delhi government and municipal bodies, directing the chief secretary to file a better affidavit by January 27, 2025, outlining compliance measures.
Additionally, the court ordered the Delhi government to submit a report by January 15, 2025, listing innovative steps to address illegal dumping and reduce waste generation.
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Environmental and health risks ignored
Experts have flagged the authorities’ complete failure to implement the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, claiming they remain on paper, biting the dust. On the ground, no substantial progress is visible. Environmentalists have repeatedly highlighted the health and ecological risks posed by the landfills. Methane emissions from decomposing waste contribute to air pollution, while leachate runoff pollutes nearby water sources. Despite these warnings, authorities continue to opt for temporary fixes instead of systemic reforms.
Speaking to Patriot, environmentalist Bhavreen Kandhari said, “The expanding and overflowing landfills and the establishment of yet another waste-to-energy (WTE) plant in Delhi clearly indicate the abject failure of solid waste management in the city. This failure underscores a blatant disregard for implementing the most basic and critical step in waste management—waste segregation at source, which remains both achievable and necessary.”
“The authorities and officers responsible for this negligence must be held accountable and prosecuted for their inaction and lack of commitment to sustainable waste management practices. Such apathy not only increases the risk of environmental and public health crises but also constitutes a direct contempt of the Supreme Court of India, which has repeatedly emphasised the importance of effective waste management systems,” Kandhari added.
Political blame game ahead of elections
The issue of Delhi’s landfills has become increasingly political, especially with the approaching Assembly elections. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which governs Delhi, has long promised to tackle the city’s waste management crisis. In the 2020 elections, AAP vowed to eliminate the landfills using scientific methods. However, critics argue that progress has been slow. After winning the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections in 2022, AAP promised to clear the three major landfills— Okhla, Ghazipur, and Bhalswa— while ending the 15-year reign of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the MCD.
The BJP has frequently accused AAP of failing to deliver on its promises. Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva criticised AAP for extending the landfill clearance deadline until 2028, well beyond its current MCD term in 2027. In contrast, the AAP government blamed the BJP for the mismanagement and corruption that led to the growing waste problem, pointing to its own progress in reducing landfill waste by 50% in 18 months. Despite challenges, the AAP government acknowledged the difficulty of meeting ambitious disposal targets set by Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena, including clearing 33,000 metric tonnes of waste daily.
LG Saxena recently expressed dissatisfaction with the slow pace, directing the MCD to clear all 30 lakh metric tonnes of waste from the three landfills within one year, instead of two, and ensure the land is scientifically levelled for reuse.
New initiative in 2025
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is set to launch the second phase of biomining at its three major landfill sites, having selected a concessionaire for the task.
According to a senior official privy to the development, “The proposal, which awaits final approval from commissioner Ashwini Kumar, falls under the Supreme Court’s directive granting Kumar authority to clear six key solid waste management projects in the city. This phase targets the biomining of 80 lakh tonnes of legacy waste within 18 months, with 20 lakh tonnes at the Okhla landfill, and 30 lakh tonnes each at Bhalswa and Ghazipur. Funding for the project will come from the Swachh Bharat Mission, with provisions to extend operations to process an additional 40 lakh tonnes if initial targets are met on time.”
However, the project has faced delays of over a year due to the absence of an MCD standing committee. While Bhalswa met its 45-lakh-tonne target by August 2023, Okhla and Ghazipur lagged significantly, with the former achieving its 30-lakh-tonne goal four months late and the latter processing only 13 lakh tonnes by September 2023.
Non-implementation of existing norms
The Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, mandate 100% waste segregation at source. However, MCD recently informed the Supreme Court that 55% of the city’s solid waste is currently being segregated. Despite outlining a roadmap to achieve 90% segregation by August 2026, experts remain sceptical, citing a lack of ground-level implementation.
Environmentalists, including Bharati Chaturvedi, Director of Chintan, have criticised the reliance on waste-to-energy plants, warning of their hazardous impact on air quality. “This is not just a failure of the municipal corporation but a larger failure of the Delhi government,” Chaturvedi said.
She emphasised that without a composting policy for wet waste, which constitutes 50% of total waste, the landfill crisis would persist. “The central government has already made the policy—the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016—but the Delhi government has failed to implement it effectively,” she said.
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A looming waste crisis
With Delhi expected to generate nearly 12,020 tonnes of waste daily by 2027, the city’s current waste processing capacity of 8,073 tonnes falls alarmingly short. Experts warn of an impending waste crisis unless decisive action is taken. Proper segregation, enhanced public awareness, and the adoption of bioremediation techniques remain critical to mitigating Delhi’s towering garbage woes.
