Shocking that 3,000 tonnes of solid municipal waste goes unprocessed in Delhi: SC
New Delhi, Apr 22: The Supreme Court on Monday termed as "shocking" that 3,000 tonnes of 11,000 tonnes of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) generated in Delhi every day is not processed.
A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan, which perused a report of the Commission of Air Quality Management (CAQM) on pollution in the national capital region (NCR) and adjoining areas said it is a serious issue.
"It's been eight years since the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 have come into existence but in the capital city there is no compliance. It's shocking," the bench said, adding that the CAQM report says on an average 11,000 tonnes of MSW is generated in Delhi every day but only 8,000 tonnes are processed.
"So, it means every day 3,000 tonnes of MSW is generated that cannot be processed in the capital city," the bench said, as it issued notice to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and the Delhi Cantonment Board.
The bench sought their response by May 10 and said before the next hearing, the three civic bodies shall call a meeting of officials on compliance of the 2016 rules and the Centre's Urban Development department shall formulate and place on record a plan to tackle the problem.
The top court was hearing pleas seeking directions to authorities to check worsening air pollution in Delhi and adjoining areas.
The bench also flagged non-compliance of the Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules of 2016 and said deterrent action has been taken against very few.
"Stricter action is required to be taken against sites which generate uncontrolled Construction and Demolition (C&D) wastes," the bench said, adding it will examine the issue in detail.
On stubble burning, the bench said it would like to see the standard operating procedure and the framework issued by the CAQM and the manner in which the task forces in different states are functioning.
"We would like to see the power and duties of different task force working to check the stubble burning," the bench added.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Hamas accepts cease-fire proposal for Gaza, but Israel's stance still uncertain
Jerusalem, May 6: Hamas announced Monday it has accepted an Egyptian-Qatari cease-fire proposal, but there was no immediate word from Israel, leaving it uncertain whether a deal had been sealed to bring a halt to the seven-month-long war in Gaza.
It was the first glimmer of hope that a deal might avert further bloodshed. Hours earlier, Israel ordered some 100,000 Palestinians to begin evacuating the southern Gaza town of Rafah, signalling that an attack was imminent. The United States and other key allies of Israel oppose an offensive on Rafah, where around 1.4 million Palestinians, more than half of Gaza's population, are sheltering.
An official familiar with Israeli thinking said Israeli officials were examining the proposal, but the plan approved by Hamas was not the framework Israel proposed.
An American official also said the US was still waiting to learn more about the Hamas position and whether it reflected an agreement to what had already been signed off on by Israel and international negotiators or something else. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity as a stance was still being formulated.
Details of the proposal have not been released. Touring the region last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had pressed Hamas to take the deal, and Egyptian officials said it called for a cease-fire of multiple stages starting with a limited hostage release and some Israeli troop pullbacks from Gaza. The two sides would also negotiate a “permanent calm” that would lead to a full hostage release and greater Israeli withdrawal, they said.
