Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) Grapples with Waste Disposal Dilemma

Surat : As the grand inauguration of the Surat Diamond Bourse (SDB), the world’s largest office building in Khajod, inches closer on December 17, the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) finds itself facing a monumental challenge. The National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) order to close the Khajod disposal site in 2017 still haunts the SMC, which has struggled to deal with approximately 1.50 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of solid waste accumulated over the years. Shockingly, the site has seen over 50 lakh metric tonnes of waste dumped since 2002.

The present waste disposal site at Khajod has area of only 61.2 hectares. The civic body has started procedures to get the land for the new dumping site from state government. The SMC has been collecting over 2200 Metric tons of wastes daily from Surat city.

Now, with the Prime Minister’s impending visit, the SMC has received a stern ultimatum from the Gujarat Government: clear the Khajod disposal site and transform it into a green area before PM Modi’s arrival in December. However, the SMC is grappling with uncertainty, as it has yet to operationalize the alternate solid waste disposal site in Uber village near Surat. Although the land has been allotted, the project’s cost is estimated at Rs 300 crore, and environmental clearance is still pending.