Despite a massive fire at the Adampur landfill being common knowledge, the Bhopal Municipal Corporation has maintained a conspicuous silence over the smouldering waste on its social media platforms nd the daily media brief it issues to the press.
Largely unreachable, BMC officials have responded to speculation around the cause and handling of the fire by selectively leaking information to handpicked media outlets.
This silence has backfired. Besides triggering speculations, it has also made evident that the civic body is attempting to manage coverage around an incident with serious implications for the environment and public health.
As per available information, the fire was triggered by methane emissions from lakhs of tonnes of unsegregated waste lying unchecked at the site. Sources say municipal officials responsible for the landfill escalated the matter to the BMC headquarters only after the fire had spiralled out of control.
Media persons and photographers who reached the site after smoke became visible from across the city say that even at that late stage, BMC officials tried to block coverage and downplay the incident.
The landfill is managed by a private contractor under the supervision of BMC officials responsible for ensuring safe and environmentally sound handling of waste. That municipal officials allowed the waste to accumulate unsegregated despite a significant rise in mercury since March is a lapse that deserves closer scrutiny. This isn’t the first time that mishandling of waste at the site has sparked concern. In 2023, the National Green Tribunal levied a Rs 1.8 crore penalty on the civic body after finding gaps in waste management at Adampur, one of the largest landfills in the state.
Though official word on the matter is unavailable, reports suggest that the BMC now plans to levy a penalty on the landfill contractor for lapses in its discharge of duties. However, there is no indication of any action against civic officials responsible for supervision. Ironically, the BMC is among the agencies tasked with ensuring clean air in the city. Over the past year, municipal inspections have led to lakhs in spot fines against citizens for non-compliance with environmental guidelines. At a time when Adampur smoulders and the civic body appears to be working to deflect attention from the incident, questions, like smoke, just hang in the air.
