Residents lead protest against civic body after smoke from dumping ground pollutes air
Smoke from the dumping ground has been causing health problems
The toxic fumes emanating from Ambernath’s dumping ground have put the lives of its 6 lakh residents at risk. Worse, residents claim that all their complaints to the region’s municipal corporation have fallen on deaf ears. On Sunday, residents led a protest against the civic authority’s apathy towards the issue.
According to the Ambernath Citizens’ Forum (ACF), for the last one week, toxic fumes have been emanating from the dumping ground, raising serious health concerns. After many complaints remained unattended at the Ambernath Municipal Corporation (AMC), ACF along with 300 residents led an agitation to the dumping ground. The ACF is now in the process of trying to register an FIR against civic authorities for shoddy management of the problem. Tanmay Adak, member of the ACF, said, "Locals in the vicinity are fed up with the continuous smoke. Several residents are falling sick due to this." Satyajit Burmen, another member of the ACF, said, "This dumping ground is adjacent to the state highway. Due to the smoke, we don’t get a clear view of the road."
Ambernath residents during the agitation over daily fires at the dumping ground
Adak added, "Many complaints to AMC have borne no result. That’s why we led a mass protest to the dumping ground. After the protest, we went to the Shivaji Nagar Police station to file an FIR against the civic authority, but they refused to register a complaint, claiming that an FIR cannot be registered against them." An officer, on condition of anonymity, said, "The Pollution Control Board has been asked to look into the issue. Our action depends on the report from the board." ACF has now written a letter to Thane CP Param Bir Singh to get clarity on the matter of filing the FIR.
When contacted, Ganesh Deshmukh, chief officer, Ambernath Municipal Council, said the toxic fumes were due to methane gas production inside the heap. "We are in the process of shifting the dumping ground," he said.
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