City residents take out protest march against 'hazardous' Okhla waste-to-energy plant

A number of civil society organisations and city residents Saturday took out a march to protest the alleged failure of authorities to shut down a waste-to-energy plant in Okhla, saying toxic emissions from it were polluting the area.

The protesters said the Okhla plant is situated in a densely-populated part of South Delhi. The incinerator is close to Sukhdev Vihar, Ishwar Nagar, New Friends Colony, Jasola, Sarita Vihar, Haji Colony and Ghaffar Manzil.

They said a joint panel of the Central Pollution Control Board and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee had told the Supreme Court in September 2018 that the plants at Okhla, Ghazipur and Narela-Bawana were not complying with the emission standards.

Unconcerned about the pollution problem, the operator of the plant was seeking to increase its capacity from 16 megawatts to 20 megawatts, the residents claimed.