Pimpri-Chinchwad residents threaten to dump waste in municipal commissioners office

The Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation has proposed to stop collecting wet waste from large housing societies (File Photo)Several housing societies in Pimpri-Chinchwad have threatened to dump wet waste in the municipal commissioner’s office if the civic body does not withdraw its proposal to stop collecting the waste from large housing societies starting July 1. The Chikhali-Moshi-Pimpri-Chinchwad Housing Society Federation said the proposal is unilateral, impractical, and unjust to the residents.Sanjeevan Sangale, president of the federation, told The Indian Express on Tuesday that the federation submitted a complaint to Municipal Commissioner Vijay Suryavanshi, warning of an agitation if the plan is implemented without consultation or coordination. According to the federation, under the Solid Waste Management Rules 2016 issued by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, housing projects with more than 100 flats must install an organic waste converter machine. It said the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) should ensure compliance with the rule before granting construction permits or occupancy certificates. The federation alleged that many large housing projects in Pimpri-Chinchwad were granted occupancy certificates despite lacking such waste processing systems. “Although we have raised this issue with the administration for several years, no concrete action has been taken,” Sangale said. Sangale said the proposed policy would place the entire burden of waste management directly on housing societies. “This decision is impractical due to a lack of space, technical difficulties, and poor prior planning. Many societies simply do not have the open space required to install waste processing systems. Therefore, this decision imposes an unfair financial and managerial burden on the societies,” he added. Sangale said the civic body should consult the housing societies’ office-bearers in the city before making such a decision. “If the municipal corporation takes a unilateral decision without consulting us and stops collecting wet waste from large societies, we will be forced to bring all that waste and dump it in the municipal commissioner’s office. For many years, we have been continuously following up with the administration regarding the implementation of the Solid Waste Management Rules 2016 and the responsibility of builders. However, if there is no concrete action on that front and, instead, the burden is placed on society residents, it will not be acceptable to us,” he said.