National
Policy on landfill sites soon, says Environment Secretary
New Delhi, Feb 8 (IANS) The Union Environment Ministry will soon come up with a policy to manage the landfill sites in and around the national capital, a top government official said on Thursday.
Environment Secretary C.K. Mishra said the ministry was in talks with the stakeholders and officials over a policy on the landfill sites.
“Meetings are being held over (the issue of) landfill sites… A policy will be in place soon,” Mishra said here.
Delhi produces over 14,000 tonnes of solid waste every day.
Considered an embarrassment for the national capital, Delhi has four huge solid and municipal waste dumping yards, of which the three largest and oldest are un-engineered or unscientific, and therefore catch fire at times and contaminate ground water, besides occupying expensive land in the heart of commercially important locations of the city.
According to the 2016 solid waste management rules, a landfill site must not exceed 20 meters in height, must not be older than 22-25 years and must have a clay-lining at the bottom to save the land and ground water.
However, the biggest and oldest of all the dumping sites in the national capital — Ghazipur landfill site — is still functional since 1984. This site in east Delhi was supposed to be shut in 2008 and holds 130 lakh tonnes of solid waste.
In September 2017, a small chunk of Ghazipur site fell on the road and into the Kondi canal that runs parallel, which killed two persons and posed a huge medical threat to the people living nearby.
According to the municipal engineers, the portion that fell was merely one per cent of the entire dumping yard.
The others two un-engineered dumping grounds include Okhla site in south Delhi and Bhalaswa in north Delhi.
The fourth yard at Bawana is the only one that qualifies as a “landfill site”, since it is the only “engineered solid waste dumping and processing site” in the entire national capital.
–IANS
kd/nir/bg
National
Foodman Vishal Singh Honored for Hunger Free World Mission in Bangkok
Lucknow: Vishal Singh, a renowned social worker from Lucknow, also known as Foodman, has once again made India proud. He was honored by the Happy Hands Gloves Cooperative Limited Company in Korathai, Thailand, for his work with the Hunger Free World Mission.
The Hunger Free World Mission’s meeting was held in Korathai, Thailand, under Vishal Singh’s leadership. Representatives from several countries, including Mr. Raja Dwivedi (Managing Director of Happy Hands Gloves Limited), Thailand Coordinator Mr. Raja Mishra, and member Mr. Varun Singh, attended the event.
Under Vishal Singh’s leadership, the attendees took a pledge to work together toward creating a hunger-free world.
Speaking on the occasion, Vishal Singh explained that the main goal of the Hunger Free World Mission is social participation. He said the mission is not just about feeding people but also about meeting other basic needs of those who are struggling. The mission focuses on helping families of terminally ill patients in hospitals by providing food and shelter. It also works to fulfill essential needs like education, jobs, and care for the elderly.
For the last 16 years, the Vijay Sri Foundation has been providing free services, benefiting thousands of people. Vishal Singh highlighted that the mission aims to gain global recognition like other organizations such as WHO, WWF, and Red Cross, which work for social causes.
During this meeting, Vishal Singh was appointed as the Chairman of the Hunger Free World Mission by representatives from various countries. They also discussed holding regular meetings in different countries to push the mission forward.
Business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has also supported this humanitarian mission, vowing to promote the idea of “Seva Parmo Dharma” (Service is the highest duty) worldwide. Vishal Singh praised him, stating that people like Dr .Abhishek Verma inspire others to work for the betterment of society.
Recently, Romania’s Ambassador, Mr . Daniela Sezonov Ţane, invited Vishal Singh to the Romanian Embassy in Delhi, where they discussed the mission in detail. Impressed by his humanitarian work, she honored Vishal Singh and invited him to Romania to take the mission forward .
Food man Vishal Singh has been serving the people of India for the past 16 years. Through the Vijay Sri Foundation, he provides free meals to cancer patients & their families ,shelter, and education for women & children along with running free old-age homes in Lucknow.
In addition to his humanitarian work, Vishal Singh also addresses issues like crime and corruption through his role as Chairman of Seva Path Media and Managing Director of Vijay Sri Foundation.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vishal Singh and his team worked tirelessly to provide food and help to the needy, including starving children, elderly citizens, and pregnant women. Despite contracting the virus himself, he continued to assist others after his recovery. He even created a life-saving oxygen regulator using household items, which was praised by doctors both in India and abroad.
In his address at the meeting, Vishal Singh spoke about his mission to create a hunger-free world. He pointed out that India’s large population, along with issues like unemployment and poverty, has caused the country to fall on the Hunger Index. He urged people to contribute just one handful of grains daily to help create a hunger-free world.
He concluded by saying that through social participation, we can empower the people around us, meet their basic needs, and work together to build a stronger, more prosperous, and developed society.