The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday directed the State to file a report on a public interest litigation petition that sought a direction to the government to appoint a monitoring committee comprising experts to intervene and resolve the issue of solid waste management in Seeradum Kanal in Kodaikanal.
A Division Bench of Justices P.N. Prakash and R. Hemalatha ordered notice and sought the report from the State on a petition filed by Jhatkaa Org represented by its Managing Trustee Avijit Micheal of Adukkam in Kodaikanal. He also sought direction to the authorities to close or shift the dump yard in Seeradum Kanal.
The petitioner said that the site in issue was 3.77 acres wide. The dump yard was filled with mixed untreated garbage. There was a retaining wall between the dump yard and a reserve forest. In 2018, the retaining wall collapsed and the waste materials from the dump yard fell into the reserve forest.
The waste and leachate was also mixing into a stream ultimately resulting in the pollution of soil and groundwater which has transformed into a breeding ground for pathogens. In order to clear the waste the local sanitary workers set fire to the spillage resulting in the discharge of toxic fumes affecting the flora and the fauna, he said.
He said Kodaikanal municipality continues to dump solid waste without segregation and also the retaining wall was not reconstructed. Steps should be taken to rebuild the retaining wall and to clear the spillage from the reserve forest area. He sought a direction to the authorities to constitute a monitoring committee and close or shift the dumpyard.
