The court directed day-to-day appropriate monitoring of odour and increase in pollution levels between 1 am and 6 am as per petitioners’ grievance and report be placed on record during next hearing on May 7. (Express Archive)
The Bombay High Court on Monday observed that pollution and odour emitting from Kanjurmarg dumping site in suburban eastern Mumbai affecting lakhs of residents in Mulund, Vikhroli and Bhandup cannot be accepted at all.
The HC also directed the authorities to monitor and study emissions of gases, including methane, causing late night odour in the vicinity and take effective immediate steps to contain pollution.
Hearing pleas of residents of Kannamwar Cooperative Housing Society Association Ltd, situated in the vicinity, and NGO Vanashakti, a bench of Justices Girish S Kulkarni and Aarti A Sathe was informed that immediate concern was emission and odour from Kanjurmarg landfill between 1 am and 6 am on daily basis.
The petitioners, through advocates Shriram Kulkarni and Abhijeet Rane for the Housing Society and Zaman Ali for Vanashakti claimed that such pollution is actually affecting not only the Kannamwar Nagar area having a population of over 15 lakh, but also the areas from Vikhroli, Mulund and Bhandup.
“We can certainly notice the seriousness of concerns of petitioners as all these areas are developing areas with multi-storied buildings with lakhs of citizens residing in thickly populated area. It cannot be that continuous pollution affecting large population can at all be accepted,” the HC noted.
The court also said the other immediate concern was of emission of methane gas referred in the the news reports that showed the “disturbing state of affairs” and claimed the Kanjurmarg landfill site was emitting dangerous methane gas, considered to be a climate threat. The reports were based on study conducted by University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
On April 24, the bench had pulled up the Maharashtra government and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for “extremely casual approach” towards waste management at the Kanjurmarg dumping site and had warned of passing a drastic order stopping operations at the site if improvements were not seen and direct its relocation to an alternate site away from human habitation.
On April 25, the judges visited the site. On Monday, senior advocate Anil Sakhare for BMC submitted its affidavit filed through Avinash Kate, chief engineer (solid waste management), claiming it has taken notice of methane emissions and has communicated the same to experts in the field. They also sought time of two weeks to go through the same report and consider immediate measures.
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The court was informed that experts, including Prashant Bhave of Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI), Ganesh Kale of the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) and Anurag Garg of IIT-Bombay, will examine the report related to methane emissions, “which are dangerous not only for the environment but also to health of the citizens”.
The BMC also stated that it will immediately take up adequate compensation to maintain a buffer zone between human habitation at Kannamwar Nagar.
The court directed day-to-day appropriate monitoring of odour and increase in pollution levels between 1 am and 6 am as per petitioners’ grievance and report be placed on record during next hearing on May 7.
The HC said the report should envisage experts’ opinions “on nature of activities undertaken at dumping sites at such period and scientific reasons as to why such odour is felt only during the late night time”.
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Justice Kulkarni also recorded a concern about emissions of various other gases and directed placing display board of pollution levels created specifically for dumping ground, indicating levels of different gases being emitted “in the interest of maintaining environment and contain pollution”.
It said such a display board be devised by the experts and installed with the consultation of Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) within a month.
Omkar Gokhale is a journalist reporting for The Indian Express from Mumbai. His work demonstrates exceptionally strong Expertise and Authority in legal and judicial reporting, making him a highly Trustworthy source for developments concerning the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court in relation to Maharashtra and its key institutions.
Expertise & Authority
Affiliation: Reports for The Indian Express, a national newspaper known for its rigorous journalistic standards, lending significant Trustworthiness to his legal coverage.
Core Authority & Specialization: Omkar Gokhale's work is almost exclusively dedicated to the complex field of legal affairs and jurisprudence, specializing in:
Bombay High Court Coverage: He provides detailed, real-time reports on the orders, observations, and decisions of the Bombay High Court's principal and regional benches. Key subjects include:
Fundamental Rights & Environment: Cases on air pollution, the right to life of residents affected by dumping sites, and judicial intervention on critical infrastructure (e.g., Ghodbunder Road potholes).
Civil & Criminal Law: Reporting on significant bail orders (e.g., Elgaar Parishad case), compensation for rail-related deaths, and disputes involving high-profile individuals (e.g., Raj Kundra and Shilpa Shetty).
Constitutional and Supreme Court Matters: Reports and analysis on key legal principles and Supreme Court warnings concerning Maharashtra, such as those related to local body elections, reservations, and the creamy layer verdict.
Governance and Institution Oversight: Covers court rulings impacting public bodies like the BMC (regularisation of illegal structures) and the State Election Commission (postponement of polls), showcasing a focus on judicial accountability.
Legal Interpretation: Reports on public speeches and observations by prominent judicial figures (e.g., former Chief Justice B. R. Gavai) on topics like free speech, gender equality, and institutional challenges.
Omkar Gokhale's consistent, focused reporting on the judiciary establishes him as a definitive and authoritative voice for legal developments originating from Mumbai and impacting the entire state of Maharashtra. ... Read More
