NEW DELHI: Nearly a month after the National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered the immediate cleanup of the Jawaharlal Nehru (JLN) Stadium following a concert by singer Diljit Dosanjh, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) conducted an inspection and reported the premises as clean.
In its report to the NGT, the DPCC emphasised that maintaining the stadium’s cleanliness during non-sporting events is the responsibility of the event organisers.
The concert, held on October 26 and 27, 2024, featured protective decks over the football ground to prevent damage, ensuring the stadium’s condition remained intact. The DPCC’s inspection on December 19, 2024, followed an NGT directive to restore the stadium to its original state and clear all waste.
The tribunal issued this order on November 19, 2024, after news reports highlighted extensive trash, including broken glass, beer cans, and plastic wrappers, left behind after the concert. The reports also noted athletes attempting to clean the venue but struggling due to the scale of the mess.
According to the DPCC’s findings, the stadium and its surroundings were found free of litter, including public areas such as seating, gates, roads, and spectator zones.
The report also highlighted the availability of regularly maintained dustbins and a centralized waste collection room, where garbage is gathered and disposed of weekly by Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) trucks. Officials from the Sports Authority of India (SAI) confirmed that during the event, only the inner ground and running tracks were closed to athletes, while the outer grounds remained accessible.
SAI’s terms and conditions for non-sporting events require organizers to ensure thorough cleaning during and after the booking period, with penalties imposed if the venue is not handed over in a clean state.
The JLN Stadium, approved for non-sporting events by SAI in July 2013, hosted approximately 70,000 attendees during Dosanjh’s concert. The DPCC report confirmed the stadium was restored to cleanliness.