Plea in HC asks it to stay setting up of waste-to-energy plant in Deonar

Time of India

22-05-2025

Mumbai: A petition filed in the Bombay high court has urged it to stay the construction and implementation of the proposed 3,000 metric tonne per day waste-to-energy (WtE) incineration plant at Deonar dumping ground and to halt relocation of Dharavi residents to the "contaminated" area.
"The said project, if allowed to proceed, will not only exacerbate the already severe environmental degradation prevailing in the locality but will also result in grave violations of fundamental rights of over ten lakh residents inhabiting the surrounding areas, particularly their constitutional right to life," states the petition by Govandi-based Al Abbas Charitable Foundation, a public trust. It states that the plant with 600 metric tonne capacity is expected to be operational by October.
The petition, filed through advocate Abid Sayyad, states that the densely populated surrounding areas of Govandi, Mankhurd, Shivajinagar, Bainganwadi and nearby areas are already experiencing a "public health crisis due to prolonged existence" of Deonar dumping ground that is characterised by "recurring fires, toxic emissions, and gross mismanagement of solid waste." The incidence of chronic ailments such as tuberculosis, cancer, asthma, and other respiratory illnesses is "significantly higher in this region than in other parts of the city" as substantiated by public health data.
On April 16, residents submitted written objections and "despite such representations, the authorities continued to push forward the project."
The petition states that in Oct last year, the state govt gave 124 acres of Deonar landfill for relocating residents of the Dharavi redevelopment project. "Such relocation exposes a fresh population to an already contaminated and hazardous zone compounding public health risks," it adds.
The only feasible and constitutionally appropriate course of action "is to relocate any such WtE facility far outside residential zones, ideally beyond municipal limits, to non-inhabited zones following comprehensive environmental impact assessment and meaningful public consultation.
" It has referred to Supreme Court judgments "that critique the failure of WtE plants in India... the ineffectiveness of incineration-based systems in Indian urban settings."
Therefore, the trust sought "urgent judicial intervention" for the protection of public health, environmental integrity, and to prevent irreversible consequences of the respondents' arbitrary actions. Among its prayers is setting up of an committee comprising independent environmental scientists, medical experts, public health officials, and civil society representatives to evaluate "the long-term.
.. impacts of the WtE project."