‘Business as usual’: Why Gurgaon’s Khandsa waste site keeps catching fire

The Municipal Corporation of Gurugram’s (MCG) secondary waste dumping point at Khandsa caught fire on Wednesday night. (Express Photo)

“They burn the industrial waste, then put water on it and load it for selling by weight. Illegal dumping also continues at the site. When it burns, nearby residents suffer and develop ailments. Fire vehicles were damaged trying to reach the site. The area gets filled with dense black smoke. Overnight, two tenders were deployed at the site, and four more arrived today,” the resident claimed.

The citizen group pointed out that residents and firefighters are being repeatedly exposed to toxic, carcinogenic smoke: “The MCG waste collection secondary dumping point at Khandsa Sector 37 is on fire once more… just days after residents were already exposed to severe toxic smoke and burning waste for the past 5 days.”

An official from the Sector 37 fire station said the fire was doused by 11 am Thursday.

When contacted, Municipal Commissioner Pradeep Dahiya said that a fire tender and a long-range sprinkler (with hose pipes) have now been stationed at the site permanently. “We will install high-mast lights and CCTVs also.”

The Municipal Commissioner and Additional Commissioners had inspected the site in the morning and ordered for these arrangements.

‘Business as usual’, allege residents

Gurgaon resident and founder-member of citizen group Why Waste your Waste, Ruchika Sethi Takkar, said operations at the site seemed like “business as usual”, with machines continuing to load burnt, water-soaked waste onto trucks.

Observing “no visible sense of urgency” to arrest the hazard, she pointed out that the MCG has failed to curb the carcinogenic smoke adding to Delhi-NCR’s emission load.

Citizen collectives have written to the MCG, the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), and other authorities seeking clarity on the site’s waste composition, emissions, monitoring, and prevention systems. They also raised serious concerns over the lack of health advisories or evacuation guidance for nearby Khandsa villagers and shopkeepers when the initial fire began.

The groups also reiterated long-standing questions regarding industrial waste management at the site and whether prior warnings were acted upon by officials.

Expressing frustration over the toll on the public, the collectives highlighted that environmental fines and compensation levied on the MCG are ultimately paid from taxpayer money. Residents, they noted, are penalised multiple times: first through taxes, again through public money used for penalties stemming from mismanagement, and finally through the severe health impacts of exposure to toxic smoke, landfill leachate, and microplastics.

Inaction by officials

Despite the severe health hazards, older internal communications accessed by The Indian Express show alleged inaction by ground-level officials.

On November 4, 2024, following media reports of fires at the site, the Joint Commissioner-I issued a ‘Most Urgent’ memo directing the Senior Sanitary Inspector of Zone-I to ensure strict prohibition on burning garbage and to conduct immediate inspections.

The inspector was given three working days to submit a comprehensive report on garbage management and preventive measures. By November 8, 2024, the official had still not submitted an action-taken report, even as the fires continued unabated.

A subsequent memo from the then Joint Commissioner-I noted that the recurring fires in the highly populated area were releasing highly dangerous toxic gases, and demanded an explanation from the inspector for failing to resolve the issue.