MCG faces legal action over Bandhwari landfill
The Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) is in hot water again for failing to manage the 9 lakh MT of legacy waste at Bandhwari landfill site, as well as its non-compliance with the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016.
The Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) has filed a prosecution case against the MCG and its officials in the Special Environment Court at Faridabad, which would be heard on February 25, 2025. The case has been filed under various sections of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act and Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Rules.
This was confirmed by Pardeep Kumar, the member secretary of the HSPCB, in an affidavit filed with the National Green Tribunal (NGT). According to Kumar, the pollution board has also imposed an environmental compensation of Rs 10 lakh per month on the MCG, effective from April 2020 and continuing until November 2024. This penalty is in accordance with the NGT's interim orders for violating the Solid Waste Management Rules at the Bandhwari landfill site.
The HSPCB is also a party to at least two complaints filed by local environmentalists, who have raised concerns about the MCG's failure to clear the legacy waste at the site. These complaints are currently being heard by the NGT. Out of the total environmental compensation of Rs 5.60 crore, the HSPCB has already recovered Rs 2.80 crore, with the remaining Rs 2.80 crore still pending.
Meanwhile, residents of Bandhwari and nearby villages have been raising alarms about the environmental impact of the landfill. They claim leachate from the site has contaminated their underground water resources and that the accumulated waste has caused significant air pollution.
In addition to the Special Environment Court and the NGT, several other bodies — including the Punjab and Haryana High Court and the Haryana State Human Rights Commission — are hearing complaints related to the ongoing sanitation crisis in Gurugram and its surrounding areas.
The High Court has recently set up a judicial committee, led by a retired District and Sessions Judge, to assess the ground situation. The committee has appointed 19 local commissioners to monitor the widespread issue of garbage being dumped in vacant plots, public spaces and along roadsides, posing severe health risks to residents.
Earlier this year, given the alarming levels of untreated solid waste in the city, Haryana Government declared a municipal solid waste emergency in Gurugram under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. The government also formed a six-member committee and appointed Haryana Civil Services (HCS) officers as executive magistrates in all 35 wards to oversee the implementation of the Solid Waste Environment Exigency Programme. However, despite these efforts, the city's sanitation conditions continue to deteriorate.
