GHAZIABAD: First land acquisition and then opposition from local residents. Work on the much-awaited Galand waste-to-energy plant, a key to Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation’s plan to dispose of 1,200 MT of civic waste that the city generates daily, has been stuck in limbo for several months.
The civic body has now sought the help of the administration and police to complete the plant, which will have a capacity to process 1500 tonnes of waste per day and generate 60MW power, by next year.
The state government had inked a memorandum with a Netherland-based company, GC International, in 2018 to develop the plant over 44.2 acres in Galand. The plant was expected to come up within 36 months.
On Monday, municipal commissioner Mahendra Singh Tanwar told TOI that in November last year the company has sought an 18-month extension to develop the plant. “We have acquired land in Galand to develop the waste-to-energy plant. In November last year, when we tried to set up a boundary wall, we faced stiff opposition from local residents following which the work had to be halted. After the model code of conduct is lifted, the district administration and police will extend support to thwart any attempt to disrupt the work on the plant. We hope that the plant will be ready by next year,” Tanwar said.
Galand villagers have been protesting against the plant as they believe that it would lead to unhygienic conditions in their villages and also pose a health hazard. In November, a mob had demolished a portion of a 2,300 metre boundary wall. According to the civic officials, once ready, the plant would take care of not only Ghaziabad’s civic waste woes but also of adjoining districts like Hapur.
In the absence of a designated solid waste plant, the municipal corporation had been dumping about 1,200 tonnes of civic waste daily at the Pratap Vihar landfill site, which is now brimming with garbage.
