Fire at Ghazipur landfill site in Delhi

A fire broke out at the Ghazipur landfill site in east Delhi on Monday, officials said.

A call about the incident was received around 1.30 pm, they said.

A total of 13 fire tenders were rushed to the spot along with a robotic machine to control and douse the blaze, a senior official of the Delhi Fire Service said.

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In March 2022, a massive fire broke out at the dumping yard of the landfill, leading to a huge cloud of smoke enveloping the region and neighbouring areas.

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai last year launched a 9-point action plan to prevent incidents of fire at landfill sites.

The plan involved construction of a peripheral road around the dumpsites to facilitate movement of vehicles, patrolling teams and fire tenders and a 4-metre high boundary wall with barbed wire fencing to prevent unauthorised entry into the dumpsites.

Under the plan, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has been directed to involve an agency for segregation of waste being dumped at the landfill sites to prevent unauthorised entry of ragpickers.

Perforated high-density polyethylene pipes will be installed to prevent the accumulation of the highly flammable gas and a dedicated surveillance squad will keep a strict vigil over the activities going on at the dumpsites.

According to experts, organic waste dumped in a landfill produces methane when it rots. In hot weather conditions, methane catches fire spontaneously and the blaze spreads as it feeds on combustible material like textiles and plastics, they said.