E-waste hoarding: 5 godowns sealed, 2 held in Ghaziabad

Five godowns were sealed and two men arrested during raids conducted in Ghaziabad's Loni area on Tuesday as part of a crackdown on e-waste hoarding, officials said.

Nineteen others were also booked and 150 quintals of wire was seized during the raids conducted by Ghaziabad District Magistrate Ajay Shankar Pandey and Senior Superintendent of Police Sudhir Kumar Singh, they said.

E-waste, including wires, are burnt for extracting copper, which increases pollution.

The raids were conducted to check indiscriminate burning of scrap which causes pollution, Pandey told PTI.

He said 30 land owners have also been booked for renting out their plots to scrap dealers who were hoarding and burning e-waste.

The district magistrate has recommended suspension of assistant manager (civil), Satish, in this regard.

He said a clarification has also been sought from UPSIDC Regional Manager Smita Singh for not executing orders to reduce pollution in the area.

Station House Officer of Loni border police station has been instructed to seize the vehicles bringing e-waste in the area from Delhi, the SSP said.

He said there is a possibility of booking those found violating pollution norms under the Gangster Act.