Biomedical pollution: Residents of Govandi and Deonar take battle to Delhi

The residents of Govandi and Deonar have taken their fight against the biomedical waste treatment plant in their backyard to the President after the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board allegedly failed to provide sufficient information to their RTI queries As they await a hearing date for their petition filed with the National Green Tribunal the locals now plan to hold a protest outside the gate of SMS Envoclean on July 31The residents wrote to Droupadi Murmu on July 25 the day she took oath as Indiarsquos President ldquoIf our requests and complaints are falling on deaf ears at least the authorities will listen to the President of India We have written to her in hope that our case will be expedited and we will get to breathe clean air soonrdquo said Nafeez Ahmed Ansari a Govandi resident and an RTI activistAlso readUpset Govandi Deonar locals approach NGT over delay in shifting waste plantLocal residents outside the Govandi medical waste plantLast year former environment minister Aaditya Thackeray ordered the relocation of SMS Envoclean Mumbairsquos only medical waste treatment plant to Khalapur by May 2022 However the relocation has been delayed until June 2023 due to pending environmental clearance Tired of this delay the residents moved the National Green Tribunal NGT in May this year In the first week of this month they threatened to boycott the civic elections citing government apathyldquoNow they are again talking about a new deadline of June 2023 but we do not see the plant shifting to Khalapur even then Now we are very sure that the owners and MPCB are just delaying the matterrdquo said AnsariProtest on SundayFayyaz Shaikh president of NGO Govandi New Sangam Welfare Society said they have demanded that all of Mumbairsquos biomedical waste be diverted to Taloja instead of the present arrangement of 50 per cent till the plant is shifted to Khalapur ldquoBesides this we have demanded that the state government provide us with free medical checkups free medical treatment 24X7 access to medical facilities and compensation for damage to health due to polluted air and toxic gases emitted from the plant till it is shifted to KhalapurrdquoSmoke emits from a chimney of medical waste plant Envoclean at Govandi File picldquoResidents of GovandiMankhurd will not tolerate this anymore they are ready to protest in front of SMS Envoclean which is putting our lives at risk We will gather in large numbers and protest on July 31rdquo said resident Rafiq ShaikhSimmering anger since 2020Residents from Govandi Mankhurd Deonar and surrounding areas have filed repeated complaints against SMS Envoclean Pvt Ltd since June 2020 alleging that it would emit toxic air and black smoke after incinerating COVIDrelated personal protective equipment kits or PPEs raising health problems in the area Following a series of complaints state pollution control body MPCB directed the firm and contractor to improve their scrubber technology to reduce the black smoke released by it But residents say the facility continues to cough out thick black shootIn 2009 the BMC and MPCB contracted Envoclean to treat the cityrsquos biomedical waste which comprises human remains sharp objects like used syringes and knives gloves PPEs and masks Although the contract was to build three plants only one came upmdashat Govandimdashas the civic body was couldnrsquot find places for the other two plantsldquoThe emission levels of SMS Envoclean are being monitored by MPCB and CPCB Central Pollution Control Board daily through an online mechanism The unit has not violated the 80 micrograms per cubic metre mugmsup3 24hour safe limit for NO2 the major pollutant after the burning of waste The owners have already purchased land for setting up the plant at Khalapur The shifting process has not stopped it is just been delayed due to environment clearancesrdquo said Ashok Shingare member secretaryndashMPCBlsquoMPCB evading RTI queriesrsquoIn response to a question filed under the Right to Information Act the MPCB allegedly failed to inform the residents whether a public meeting was held or a newspaper advertisement was published before transferring the plant from Sewri as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment EIA ldquoWe submitted an RTI requesting that the pollution control body provide documents and modalities signed by MPCB and SMS Envoclean They responded by stating that no such information is available at their officerdquo said AnsariAbout the EIA report completed between 2007 and 2009 Ansari said MPCB simply replied ldquothe facility began in May 2009rdquo ldquoThis itself is an infractionrdquo Shaikh added ldquoPublic consultations are an essential part of the environmental clearance process under the Centrersquos Environment Impact Assessment Notification 2006 Central guidelines clearly state that the full EIA report is to be shared publicly in multiple languages 30 days before the public hearingrdquoCityrsquos medical wastegtgt 1215 tonnes a day before March 2020 preCOVIDgtgt 36 tonnes in MayJune 2020 peak of pandemicgtgt 18 tonnes in Jun July 2021gtgt 15 tonnes current generation