The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 provides authority to State Governments to ban burning of any material if it is likely to cause air pollution.

Despite this, burning of garden waste continues in most cities of India. Government offices, institutions and hospitals have vast areas of open urban land under their control, and are the most prominent garden waste burners. Municipality/ Corporation workers entrusted with sweeping and collecting of waste including garden waste set fire to heaps of garbage. Municipal parks also burn garden waste. Many hospitals burn hospital waste carelessly, creating dangerous pollution. The smelly smoke arising from fires of hospital waste gives an indication of the toxic fumes that are released.  The problem is particularly acute in places such as Bangalore, due to the added burdens of high population density and vehicular pollution.  

The dangers of air pollution are well known. A News Release from the World Health Organization dated 25 March 2014 is titled “7 million premature deaths annually linked to air pollution”. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2014/air-pollution/en/   It goes on to give the estimate that one in eight deaths world-wide are due to air pollution.

We urge you to prohibit the burning of garden waste as well as garbage within city limits, and make this a cognisable offence with immediate effect.  Please empower fire stations to enforce the no-burning rule and file FIRs. This is a simple measure that will improve the quality of life in our cities and reduce healthcare costs.  Please instruct government offices, institutions and parks to implement composting of garden waste. 

 

Srinivasan Ramani                         Meera Joshi                                     Amla Sirsi