NGT launches suo motu proceedings over toxic waste at Dadumajra dump in Chandigarh

Meanwhile, ahead of the separate hearing planned in mid-September, an NGT inspection team comprising experts from the CPCB and other technical agencies is expected to visit Chandigarh in the third or fourth week of August. They will assess key sites, including the Dadumajra dump, sewage treatment plants, and stormwater drains.

Residents of the surrounding neighbourhoods have reported rising cases of respiratory illnesses, skin infections, and tuberculosis, attributing these to toxic runoff mixing with rainwater and seeping into residential areas. One local activist described the contaminated leachate as a “cream of poison,” underlining the grave environmental threat.

MP Manish Tewari said that when the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs visited Chandigarh, the municipal corporation had assured that the dump, comprising both legacy and concurrent waste, would be cleared by June 2025. However, in its latest response in Parliament, the government said the deadline had been extended to July 31, subject to weather conditions.

Authorities had earlier committed to clearing the dump by May 31, but that deadline passed amid a large-scale fire at the site, which took over 1.25 lakh litres of water to extinguish. The revised July 31 target was also missed, with officials blaming persistent monsoon rains. Municipal Corporation officials maintain that accelerated bioremediation is in progress and that around 70–75 per cent of the third and final mound, amounting to nearly 2.4 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste, has already been processed.

Yet, visible heaps of waste remain, and the delay has contributed to Chandigarh slipping from the targeted 7-star rating in the Swachh Survekshan “Garbage-Free City” rankings to just 3 stars.

In mid-July, the CPCC issued a show-cause notice to the Municipal Corporation over the leachate leak and directed urgent corrective measures to protect public health and the local ecosystem.

Separately, the municipal corporation has issued stern warnings to its contractor firms—Hindustan Steel Works Construction, Braithwaite Burn & Jessop, and Aakanksha Enterprises—threatening penalties if legacy waste processing is not completed promptly. Fines ranging from Rs 38 lakh to Rs 46 lakh have already been imposed on these agencies for delays and for failing to install site-monitoring cameras.