Gaming zones, parks: What MCD plans to do after legacy landfill sites are cleared in Delhi

According to the NGT order in 2023, dense forest has to be developed across at least one third of the land once the sites are cleared

Written by Drishti Jain

New Delhi | September 27, 2025 05:35 AM IST

2 min read

The civic body targets 100% remediation of the Bhalswa site by December 2026, Ghazipur by 2027 and Okhla by July 2026 (Express File/Praveen Khanna)

Parks, gaming zones or other commercial establishments will replace stinking garbage once the legacy landfill sites in Delhi are cleared, officials have suggested. An ‘expression of interest’ was circulated in this regard by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) recently.
Biomining and bioremediation of waste is being carried out across a total of 202 acres of land at three legacy landfill sites in Northwest Delhi’s Bhalswa, Southeast Delhi’s Okhla and East Delhi’s Ghazipur.

The invitation for proposals to be submitted for the land use, keeping in view the National Green Tribunal’s 2023 order, was extended recently to agencies and NGOs, according to officials.

According to the NGT order in 2023, dense forest has to be developed across at least one third of the land once the sites are cleared. Another one third of the land, the order said, can be utilised for setting up integrated waste processing facilities or other infrastructure such as compost plants.

The remaining land can be used for other purposes, including a part of it being utilised for monetising, if funding is required for tackling legacy waste, the order stated.

“People will only be interested in coming to the sites when some part of the area is commercially viable or maybe some activity of public benefit is carried out. This will be done keeping in mind the NGT guidelines,” a civic body official said, adding that various economic models will be explored.

The civic body targets 100% remediation of the Bhalswa site by December 2026, Ghazipur by 2027 and Okhla by July 2026.

Currently, the second phase of integrated biomining is underway at the sites, while the MCD House on Friday passed proposals to float parallel tenders for the third phase.

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Meanwhile, Mayor Sardar Raja Iqbal Singh on Friday announced that the Suniyo Scheme has been extended until December 31.

“Under the Suniyo Scheme, all interest and penalties on outstanding property tax dues prior to the financial year 2020–21 will be completely waived if the taxpayer clears the principal amount of property tax for the current financial year (2025–26), along with the previous five financial years (2020–21 to 2024–25),” said an official.

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