What Living Near A Trash Pile Almost As Tall As Qutub Minar Means For Health Of Residents

A notorious landfill in national capital, New Delhi, that claimed two lives last year when a part of it caved in, has grown as tall as the Qutub Minar.

The landfill that was set up in 1984, has a prescribed limit of 20 metres but had crossed 60 metres in 2017 itself. This month, a government report came out with the alarming revelation that the landfill has reached 65 metres. This means that the most used landfill in the capital region is almost as high as the tallest monument it is home to - the Qutub Minar that stands at 73 metres.

The report, by the parliamentary standing committee on science and technology, environment and forests, reads: “laissez-faire of the civic bodies of Delhi also gets reflected in the fact that the height of Ghazipur landfill site has reached as high as 65 metres which is just eight metres less than the height of the national monument Qutub Minar”.

This must set alarm bells ringing for the authorities as it is yet another reminder that the situation in Ghazipur is getting out of hand. The report said that as per the information provided by the Delhi government itself, the city generates about 10,400 tonnes of municipal solid waste every day, and only 5,600 tonnes is processed in the city. The rest of the waste keeps piling in the three major landfill sites in Delhi, specifically in Ghazipur, Bhalswa and Okhla.

The landfill at Ghazipur reached its saturation point way back in 2002 but dumping continues. As a result, the height of the landfill that was supposed to reduce over the years, and especially after the September 2017 mishap when lives were lost, has only increased.

The site has been witnessing occasional fire flare-ups and cave-ins. But what is constant is the adverse impact of the landfill on the health of residents in villages within a 2-kilometre surrounding. Areas that fall in the Ghaziabad limits, namely Khoda, Kaushambi, Gharoli, Kondli, Kalyanpur and Ghazipur, are the worst affected.

Weeks after the damning report, Swarajya visited Ghazipur and found a complete breakdown of civic services. Despite being an industrial hub with a Central Warehousing Corporation’s warehouse that handles large quantities of freight, Ghazipur lacks basic amenities such as public dustbins and potable water, both critical to public health. Residents said almost everyone there suffers from one ailment or the other.

‘People here are falling sick. Checkups will reveal that a person here suffers from at least six diseases, chiefly respiratory diseases like asthma. I also have breathing issues because of bad air," said Gaurav Tyagi, who runs a coaching centre and has been a resident of Ghazipur for 21 years. "When we are at home, we do not feel like going to the terrace because of the stench."

A woman at the centre, who did not wish to be named, said she lived near the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) camp in Ghaziabad - which is well over 2 km from the landfill - and the stench could be felt there as well.

To check the state of public healthcare in Ghazipur, Swarajya visited the urban health centre run by Delhi University’s College of Medical Sciences and Guru Tegh Bahadur Hospital. It was all dilapidated and empty. Children playing there said they did not recall seeing it functioning.

Asked about the stance of their elected representative regarding such a state of affairs, the residents said that Vishwas Nagar MLA Om Prakash Sharma, who happens to be one of the only three elected leaders in the Delhi assembly from the Bharatiya Janata Party, never visited the area.

‘He does not come here or care about us because he did not get votes from here," a resident said, requesting anonymity.

Private practitioner Dr R S Kushwah, who works in Ghazipur, Gharoli and Kondli, said that out of every 100 residents, at least eight to 10 suffer from tuberculosis. He said he refers them to government hospitals as most cannot afford private treatment. Other respiratory ailments like asthma are also common.

However, it is the skin infections that are most common here, he said.

“Almost every person suffers from fungal infections at some point,” Khushwah said. “It is a very dusty and overcrowded area with low education and income. MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi) is entirely absent and there is no hygiene at all. The slaughterhouse along with the fish and chicken market add to the woes caused by this mountain of garbage,” he said.

Residents say they dread monsoon. When it rains, the stench worsens and the decomposed waste gets airborne and further pollutes the air. Seasonal ailments such as cold and pneumonia take a toll on children as seasons change, Dr Kushwah said. He also complained about the non-effectiveness of generic medicines that people often use instead of original ones prescribed, because they are cheaper.

Swarajya visited a local clinic where the doctor was examining a patient with a fungal infection. The doctor said skin infections were part of everyday life, thanks to contaminated air and a total lack of public hygiene. He also pointed at the mineral water he brings with himself to the clinic because the water there was not fit for drinking.

At the landfill site, contaminated wastewater was directly being discharged into the roadside drain that ran along the canal.

A slaughterhouse just across the road from the landfill also serves as a major pollutant along with the landfill and meat markets, said residents. The slaughterhouse adds to the stench as well as contamination of land and water. These markets and the slaughterhouse are also the causes of countless eagles and crows that hover above the area round the clock and have now become a trademark.

Residents say the Ghazipur landfill has damaged the entire ecosystem and has pushed people into leading a miserable life. After all these years, the state is only struggling with solutions. Despite repeated warnings against dumping more waste, the civic body is continuing to do so for lack of alternative options.

P K Khandelwal, chief engineer at the East Delhi Municipal Corporation, recently told the media that two alternative sites are under consideration and dumping at Ghazipur has fallen. While it sound like a step towards a better future, the issue is just not being handled with the urgency it deserves.

The residents, meanwhile, continue to bear the brunt.