Gujarat : Illegal Dumping of Surat Municipal Waste Puts Tribal Lives at Risk 

Surat | Gujarat — Ambika taluka was meant to bring governance closer to Gujarat’s tribal population. Instead, the newly carved administrative unit in Surat district has now emerged as a dumping ground for untreated solid waste from the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) owned Khajod waste disposal site in Surat city, putting the health, environment, and livelihoods of thousands of tribal residents at grave risk.

Following the complaints by the residents in Kankaria village in Ambika taluka, the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) raided the farm land owned by one Mohammed Rasid Sidat. To the surprise of the GPCB officials, about 5,000 tonnes of solid waste from the Khajod disposal site was recovered from the spot. It is believed that the contractors hired by the SMC for the proper processing of the solid waste on-site at Khajod, are allegedly involved in transporting the hazardous solid waste material,  without processing, and dumping in the private lands in the nearby Amibika taluka. 

According to the Solid Waste Rules 2016 under the Environment Protection Act, such waste cannot be dumped anywhere in the environment or sold because it contains harmful elements, substances that harm human health, spread diseases and non-degradable elements that spoil the environment. In addition, bio-medical waste has also been found in this waste, so this waste has also been found to be infectious, which can cause serious diseases.

The land owner, Sidat told the GPCB that the people who brought this waste were identified as Jagdish Bharwad and Lakhabhai Bharwad. The GPCB had instructed the duo to immediately lift the solid waste from the land owned by Sidat and dump at the Khajod disposal site owned by the Surat Municipal Corporation.

This matter is very serious because as per the solid waste rules, such waste cannot be sold or dumped privately. Surat Municipal Corporation cannot give such waste to anyone. As per the rules, the SMC is fully responsible for disposing of the solid waste it generates. The contractor works only as per the tender.

MHS Shaikh, president of Brackish Water Research Centre (BWRC) has submitted a written representation to Surat district collector for registering an FIR against the two middlemen, the land owner at Kankaria village for the illegal dumping of soild waste by violating the solid waste disposal rules.

According to Shaikh, the Surat Municipal Corporation has a solid waste disposal plant at Khajod and has permission to process and recycle waste there and dispose of it. As the process was not done as per the rules, he had filed a case against Surat Municipal Corporation in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in 2014. 

“Here, the people who give the waste to the landowner are not contractors. Therefore, dumping such waste in Kankaria village has damaged the environment of the village and the health of the people of the village and on the complaint of the villagers, the Gram Panchayat Kankaria has filed a complaint with the Mahuva Police Station” said Shaikh. 

“ Along with this, the Gram Panchayat has also submitted a complaint to the Mamlatdar Ambika Taluka, TDO Ambika and Taluka Health Officer Ambika vide No. 18/2025. From 23-12-2025, the Mamlatdar has also informed the GPCB and taken action and submitted a complaint to the Mahuva Police Station to take action as per the rules.

Following the serious expose, the GPCB has asked the Surat Municipal Corporation to take corrective measures regarding  the illegal dumping of solid waste on December 31, 2025.

“It is beyond doubt that the waste belonged to the Surat Municipal Corporation and was illegally dumped by middlemen at Kankaria village. And this waste was not fertilizer but untreated solid waste that was harmful to the health and environment, which was emitting a foul smell and the villagers were suffering” said Shaikh. 

The Mahuva police should take the statements of the villagers, get the CCTV footage of the highway/truck numbers, compare it with the CCTV footage of the Surat Municipal Corporation’s waste disposal facility at Khajod, check the call details and involvement of the garbage collectors, then it will be like milk and water.