Gurgaon: A massive fire tore through the Bandhwari landfill on Wednesday, sending flames across mounds of untreated waste and raising fresh fears over toxic smoke, air pollution and the risk to nearby residents.The blaze, believed to have started around 2pm, intensified by 4pm and triggered a multi-agency response that continued till late evening as firefighters struggled to contain it. Till late night, it was yet to be doused completely.Officials said high temperatures and strong winds helped the fire spread quickly through the dumpyard. Around 10 fire tenders were deployed, but the response was slowed by a shortage of staff and the difficult terrain inside the landfill, where vehicles could not easily move through heaps of garbage.
Around 10 fire tenders were deployed, but it was yet to be doused completely till late Wednesday night
“We received the first call at 2pm. Due to staff shortage, we sought help from private organisations. In total, we have deployed around 10 fire brigades,” fire safety officer Jai Narayan said, adding that assistance was also sought from Faridabad.With contractual workers on strike, the fire department initially sent only limited resources and later leaned on private companies, including DLF, M3M and Maruti, to strengthen operations. Earthmovers were brought in alongside fire tenders to clear access routes and help teams reach the heart of the blaze.
Methane combustion may have sparked the blaze
MCG officials reached the site around 5pm. Commissioner Pradeep Dahiya said methane combustion was the likely cause. “Efforts are underway to douse the fire. It spread due to the breeze,” he said.The fire has again put the spotlight on the landfill’s long-running crisis. Official data shows more than 17 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste are still lying at Bandhwari. Although contracts were awarded in March to process the waste, only about 40,000 metric tonnes have been cleared so far, fuelling concern over the slow pace of remediation.Environmentalists said the incident also exposed a failure to enforce basic safeguards. In an action plan submitted to National Green Tribunal, MCG had said a fire brigade would be stationed at the landfill round the clock. “MCG is failing on all accounts. It committed to a 24×7 fire brigade at the landfill, but there was no such arrangement. They are not processing the waste, so it keeps catching fire,” environmental activist Vaishali Rana said.Narayan, however, said, “We stationed a fire brigade from Sohna at the landfill for the last three to four days.”This is the first major landfill fire of the summer, reviving concerns over recurring fires, mounting waste and the continuing environmental threat posed by Bandhwari.
