Observing that its orders to clean up the Capital were “not getting the attention it deserves”, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday passed a slew of directions to the Centre, the AAP government and the three municipal corporations to ensure that the issue of solid waste management is addressed on a “war footing”.
A Bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C. Hari Shankar said it does not want to keep watching videos, filed by a court-appointed local commissioner, on the lack of garbage disposal and waste management in Delhi and directed the Centre to place on record any proposal it may have to clean up the city as well as solid waste management.
The Centre was also asked to look into the issue raised by the Delhi government that municipal bodies of each state receive funds amounting to ₹488 for each person in their jurisdiction every year from the central government while Delhi has been getting only ₹325 crore since 1991.
“Delhi needs help. Is the Capital not your [Centre’s] responsibility? Why is Delhi not entitled to ₹488 per head like the other states are getting,” the court asked. Taking note of one dengue death and several other cases of vector-borne diseases, the court said if this is what Delhi looks like now what will the authorities “achieve” next year.
