Pune: A garbage management crisis is unfolding in the area under the Pune Cantonment Board (PCB) after the waste processing facility at Hadapsar reached its maximum capacity.The quantity of waste generated within the cantonment limits has exceeded the limits. Under an existing agreement, Bhumi Green Energy 1 (BGE), a private agency operating the Hadapsar trenching ground, is mandated to process 50 tonnes of garbage per day generated by the cantonment.However, the daily waste collection has now surged to nearly 80 to 90 tonnes, putting immense pressure on the facility.The agency has informed the PCB that it can no longer process the additional trash without expanding its infrastructure. It has demanded an additional payment per tonne for processing the excess waste, a cost that the cash-strapped cantonment board says “it cannot afford”.Vijay Tilekar, the managing director of the BGE, told TOI, “We have communicated the issue to the board time and again. Unless we enhance our wherewithal, we don’t have the capacity to process additional garbage. This remained the need of the hour. However, we were yet to get clarity on this from the board.”The cantonment board official admitted that the board currently has no viable alternative for the extra garbage being generated every day.“We do not know how to process the additional 30 tonnes of waste daily. As a result, some of it has to be dumped in open areas, creating civic and environmental concerns for residents. The agency repeatedly asked us not to send the excess waste, but the question remains—where should we dump it?” the official said.Vidyadhar Pawar, the chief executive officer of the PCB, didn’t respond to phone calls.According to PCB officials, increasing the processing capacity of the plant would require an investment of nearly Rs 20 crore. Given the board’s financial constraints, arranging such funds in the near future appears unlikely.The situation has alarmed residents living near the trenching ground. They fear worsening environmental and public health consequences if the issue remains unsolved.“We have been noticing foul odours, especially during the evenings. If garbage continues to pile up in the open, it could become a breeding ground for flies, mosquitoes and stray animals,” said Sunita Jadhav, a resident of Hadapsar.Ramesh Shinde, another resident, said the authorities must urgently identify an alternative solution.“Every year the city talks about scientific waste management, but the reality on the ground remains different. Open dumping would only create more health hazards for surrounding communities,” he said.Environmental activists have also warned that prolonged open dumping could contaminate nearby soil and groundwater while increasing the risk of fires during the summers.“The emerging waste management challenge highlighted the growing pressure on the PCB which has been struggling to keep pace with rising waste generation. Unless additional funding were secured or alternative processing facilities were developed, Pune Cantonment’s garbage problem could soon escalate into a larger public health and environmental crisis,” a senior Army officer told TOI.Another senior officer from the command told TOI, “The garbage dumping and collection have been extremely poor in the cantonment. Unfortunately, we see garbage at several locations, which was unacceptable once upon a time. It remained a sad state to see such a pathetic condition now.”The board also needed to rope in more vehicles to collect garbage from their localities. It did not have funds to buy additional vehicles and deploy more manpower for the same task, said the officials.
