A massive fire broke out at the Kannahalli waste processing unit earlyon Tuesday morning. It took as many as five fire tenders to put out the fire by late afternoon. A Fire and Emergency Services Department official said the fire is suspected to have started at around 4 a.m.
Sarfaraz Khan, Joint Commissioner, Solid Waste Management, Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), said the fire had resulted in losses worth Rs. 9.5 crore. “One shed worth Rs. 2.5 crore, where RDF (refuse derived fuel) was stored has been completely gutted. Equipment, such as a shredder and baling units worth Rs. 4.5 crore, have also been burnt. But these have been insured,” he added.
Mr. Khan also said the BBMP had filed a police complaint against the New Delhi-based company responsible for the plant as they were found not to be maintaining it well. “We have also terminated their contract and will be taking over the plant,” he said.
The build-up of methane, which was caused due to the stocking up of RDF, is suspected to be the cause of the fire. “This was supposed to be sent to a Kalaburagi cement factory. But even they stopped buying this though it is a cheaper variety of fuel as transportation costs were high,” Mr. Khan said.
The unit, spread over 29 acres and with an approximate processing capacity of 500 tonnes a day, has in the past been the reason for bitter protests by locals living around it.
Channappa, president of Kannahalli-Seegehalli Kasa Vilevari Horata Samithi, said though the protests by the residents earlier this year had brought in top-level officials to the plant, nothing had been done on the ground. “We suspect that this fire will continue for a few more days and the smoke billowing out of it will make us all sick,” he said.
