Journalism of Courage
MCD can’t assert right to manage waste in Aerocity: Delhi HC
The High Court rejected the MCD’s assertion that it is the “sole authority for solid waste management in the municipal area of Delhi.”
4 min read
In the November 2024 tender, the civic body notified that it was looking to pick an agency for setting up a 50 tonne per day (TPD) Material Recovery Facility (MRF) for the management of dry solid waste in Dwarka’s Sector-29 of the Najafgarh zone under the MCD jurisdiction, on a public private partnership (PPP) basis, along with managing an existing MRF plant of 5 tonnes per day.. (Express Archive Photo by Praveen Khanna)The Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) is “an exclusive custodian” of Aerocity for providing aeronautical as well as non-aeronautical services, the Delhi High Court has ruled. The order comes in the wake of a legal battle between the DIAL, which operates the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) over a tender — related to the waste management in the area — issued by the civic body last year.
The High Court rejected the MCD’s assertion that it is the “sole authority for solid waste management in the municipal area of Delhi.” In its ruling, the court set aside the November 2024 MCD tender to the extent that it shall not include Aerocity within the scope of work enlisted by the civic body for the Najafgarh zone.
Justice Jyoti Singh, in a September 11 order that was made public on Monday, recorded, “Demonstrably, Aerocity is a part of IGIA’s Commercial Zone as reflected in a 2016 Master Plan.”
In the November 2024 tender, the civic body notified that it was looking to pick an agency for setting up a 50 tonne per day (TPD) Material Recovery Facility (MRF) for the management of dry solid waste in Dwarka’s Sector-29 of the Najafgarh zone under the MCD jurisdiction, on a public private partnership (PPP) basis, along with managing an existing MRF plant of 5 tonnes per day.
While ruling against MCD, the High Court underlined that “the objective of 2016 Rules (Solid Waste Management) was not to create any monopoly in the MCD but to scientifically manage solid waste in order to protect and improve the quality of environment as also control environment pollution.”
Opposing the scope of jurisdiction in the tender, DIAL had accused the MCD of “unlawfully” including the Airport Zone, including Aerocity which is part of Airport’s commercial zone — “undisputedly within the exclusive domain of DIAL”.
DIAL had also highlighted that as the custodian of the Airport Site, as per the Master Plan and through its lease agreement with Airports Authority of India (AAI), it has been managing all facilities in Aerocity, such as the maintenance of internal roads, street lighting, horticulture, and building construction approvals, including solid waste management and MCD was not involved in these activities.
Story continues below this ad
The court in its order said, “At the heart of the dispute lies the next and the only other question as to who is responsible for solid waste management at the Airport Site… even if solid waste management is the obligation of a local body, by a Cabinet Decision taken in a meeting held on 29.12.1997, Airports Authority of India (AAI) was designated as a local body for the airport site.
“…By the virtue of OMDA (Operation, Management and Development through an agreement), DIAL has stepped into the shoes of AAI and is empowered to manage solid waste at the Airport Site,” the court held while setting aside the tender notice to the limited extent that the scope of work cannot include Aerocity.
The court took note of the fact that DIAL produced various documents as proof that it has been managing solid waste at the Airport Site since 2007 by entering into contracts with specialised waste management agencies.
Underlining that MCD whose role “was restricted to collecting residual waste from the Airport Site against charge of User Fee”, the court recorded, “Even assuming that solid waste management is a residual function, it cannot be heard to say that it is an exclusive right so as to oust all other bodies/entities to perform this function, when entitled under other statutory regimes. Thus, the inevitable conclusion is that while MCD may be performing the function of solid waste management in the municipal area, as defined in the DMC Act and may continue to do so, but in so far as the Airport Site is concerned, MCD cannot assert its right to manage the solid waste.”
Advertisement
You May Like
Live Blog
Top Stories
Advertisement