Fire at Ghazipur landfill: Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai summons EDMC officials

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai has summoned senior officers of the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) in connection with the fire that broke out at the Ghazipur landfill a day ago, officials said on Thursday.

Rai will also chair a joint meeting of experts on Thursday afternoon to find out a technological solution to the problem of fires at landfill sites.

A massive fire erupted at the Ghazipur landfill site on Wednesday, the third such incident since March 28, sending a dense plume of smoke into the sky and exacerbating the already polluted air in nearby areas.

"The minister has summoned senior officials of the EDMC over repeated incidents of fire at the Ghazipur landfill," an official said.

Last year, the authorities reported four incidents of fire at the Ghazipur landfill. In 2017, a large part of it broke away, crashing onto a road and killing two people.

Commissioned in 1984, the Ghazipur landfill site is spread across 70 acres. In 2019, the garbage dump site had grown 65 metres high.

The Delhi Pollution Control Committee had imposed a fine of Rs 50 lakh on the EDMC after a fire erupted at the landfill on March 28.