Residents of several sectors — including 117, 118, 119, 120, 121 and 122 — will start a protest march on Friday from Noida Stadium to speak out against the shifting of the dumpsite from Sector 138 A to Sector 123.
First a deluge of more than a thousand postcards, and now a protest march. The residents of several Noida sectors will not go easy on Noida Authority’s decision to shift the garbage dump from Sector138 A to a vacant plot in Sector 123.
Residents of several sectors — including 117, 118, 119, 120, 121 and 122 — will start a protest march on Friday from Gate No 4 of Noida Stadium to Noida Authority’s office in Sector 6.
A resident complained, “Pollution levels around the Ghazipur landfill are already high, and residents in the vicinity have no choice but to breathe in toxic air, bacteria and hazardous gases. And we don’t want to be in the same boat!"
"It’ll also contaminate the groundwater of the area,” the resident added.
Anupam Oberoi, a resident of Sector 122, said, “Residents are also sending postcards to the UP CM Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Modi, urging them to intervene. This time, even if one person from each family joins the march, it will make a difference — we’ll find strength in numbers. A lot of residents are also posting their ire against the Authority’s decision on social websites.”
Noida Authority’s decision was influenced by a case filed against it by residents of Sector 137 in October this year to protest against the dumping of garbage in Sector 138 A.
Thereafter, the National Green Tribunal ordered Noida Authority to stop dumping garbage in Sector 138 A and develop a waste-to-energy plant at the site within six months from the order date. This plant was to adhere to the Solid Waste Management Rules of 2016.
So a new dumping site in Sector 123 came up, which, in the words of Noida Authority officials, was already earmarked for a landfill in the Master Plan of 2031.
On November 21, the decision to shift the site was sealed.
And from then on, residents of nearby sectors have been continuously holding demonstrations. They even met Mahesh Sharma, Union minister of state for tourism and culture, seeking his intervention. But nothing came of it.
