NEW DELHI: Hours after a fire broke out at Ghazipur landfill in east Delhi, the police has registered an FIR against unknown persons. “We have registered a case under relevant section,” the officer told this newspaper.
According to the police, a case under section 336 (act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 278 (making atmosphere noxious to health) has been registered at Ghazipur Police Station and a probe has begun.
As per experts, a landfill usually catches fire due to the gases produced in the mountain of waste. Hot and dry weather conditions around a combustible gas like Methane is said to be a possible cause, however, the officials said a probe is underway to ascertain the cause.
“It’s been 15 hours since the fire broke out. This smoke is not any common smoke, it is very poisonous. We are unable to keep our eyes open due to irritation and are breathing with difficulty,” Ram Kumar from Gharoli village, close to the landfill, said.
Several residents said that due to smoke they were not able to send their children to the school. The BJP accused the MCD and the city government of not taking any action to give a better life to them.
Delhi Mayor Shelly Oberoi said “As soon as I came to know, I instructed officers to act and inspect the site. It is better now. The situation is better.
The smoke will be controlled in next 5 hours. The BJP is only alleging. It is not a time for politics.” Thick plumes of smoke still rose from Ghazipur landfill on Monday, hours after a major fire broke out there.
A wall made of tin panels marking the boundary of the landfill also fell as a portion of garbage broke away. The several metres long wall was erected on the poultry market side.
According to the Delhi Fire Service, the landfill witnessed a big fire Sunday evening due to the gases produced in the massive mountain of waste. The fire department got a call on Sunday at 5.22 pm about the fire and pressed 14 fire tenders to put out the blaze.
According to a data submitted by MCD, the number of fires at Delhi’s three ‘garbage mountains’ had dropped considerably over the past half a decade. As per data, the three landfill sites recorded 159 fire incidents in 2017, dropped further to 120 in 2018, 48 in 2019, eight each in 2020 and 2021, five in 2022, and then just one in 2023.