Apparently, no one thought it fit to pay heed to the central government’s
Municipal Solid Waste rule which states that no human settlement should be
allowed on a garbage dump for at least 15 years after its closure.
MALAD
The BMC acquired an over 15-hectare plot at Malad in 1968. For the next 30
years, 1,000 tonnes of garbage was dumped there daily
The Supreme Court ordered the closure of the dumping ground in 2002,
following a plea that it had exhausted its capacity and was causing
inconvenience to locals.
The BMC handed over the land to Ivory Properties, which is part of the K
Raheja Group that owns most of the land in the vicinity
Ivory Properties was expected to develop a garden atop the 30-foot-tall
mounds of garbage. The completed garden is yet to be opened to the public
Experts and architects say that untreated garbage from the mounds was used
to fill up marshland in and around the dump
The Mindspace complex was built on this garbage-filled marshland. The
complex has over 100 IT and BPO companies (some of them in the Fortune 500
list), the sprawling In-Orbit Mall and a few residential colonies
The untreated waste is now blamed for releasing toxic gases-like hydrogen
sulphide, methane, mercaptans and other sulphurous compounds-which are
damaging electronics and electrical equipment in the offices, stores and
residences
Health hazards are also feared in the long run
GORAI
Since 1972, over 2,700 tonnes of waste has been dumped daily on 19 hectares
of the 25-hectare Gorai dumping ground
In 2006, the Bombay High Court ordered that dumping be stopped on the 19
hectares, following a plea similar to the Malad one
In early 2007, the BMC started shutting down the dump site.
By January 1, 2008, the ground is expected to receive its last load of
garbage.
A capping process, to be completed by May 2008, is being used to cover the
garbage shalini.nair@timesgroup.com