Pune: The river belongs to everyone. Unfortunately, waste dumped on its banks belongs to none. Or at least that is what thousands of residents of a sprawling residential society in the IT hub of Hinjewadi have come to realize, after running behind three different agencies for the past two months, all to get the illegally thrown trash along the river next door cleared.The affected residents of close to 5,000 flats in Blue Ridge Township said it was in April this year that they started seeing huge trucks dumping construction debris as well as domestic waste on private land within 50m of the Mula river. Not new to raising their voice against pollution, the residents thought this dumping would be addressed by authorities, as the waste lies within the flood line, and even moderate swelling of the river in the monsoon would engulf it, leading to pollution and other issues. But despite approaching the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA), Maan gram panchayat and Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) multiple times, all they found was that the three authorities kept passing the buck. For approximately 17,000 residents of the township, the Mula river is their only drinking water source. The society draws drinking water at a jackwell adjacent to the dumping site. Resident Anirudha Karandikar, an IT professional, said he first noticed the trucks around April 13. “At that time, the frequency was less. But then it started increasing and now, almost eight trucks are seen daily, carrying different types of garbage-construction debris, paint or chemicals, wet waste from restaurants or other places, etc. They come to an area merely 50m from the river and dump the refuse right on the floodplains.” Residents complained that multiple agencies are playing a blame game and eschewing enforcement, without caring for the environmental and public health consequences as the monsoon is heralded. They added that they have registered numerous complaints, from Govt of India’s Swachhata-MoHUA app to local grievance redressal cells. “When we made a submission on the PMRDA grievance portal, it outright rejected the complaint. We then tried to reach out to Central agencies to route us to the correct state forums. We complained on Central govt’s Swachhata-MoHUA app, which sent the complaint back to PMRDA — and it got rejected again,” said Karandikar. Resident Sunita Purushottam, who has worked in the field of environment management and sustainability for several years, emphasised the risk posed not only to township residents but also innumerable people downstream. “So much garbage has been dumped here over the months that this could become a chokepoint for the river. How can it be allowed inside the flood line? MPCB says PMRDA gives building permissions, so construction debris management should be the latter’s lookout. PMRDA says the area comes under Maan gram panchayat. The gram panchayat says it is the duty of PMRDA to act against violators and that it, as a local authority, cannot issue notices about construction or other activities on private land, which is the revenue department’s responsibility. Further, Maan gram panchayat also says MPCB must take punitive action against the private landowner as the dumping site is within the blue/red line. It is a vicious circle,” said Purushottam, adding, “There is an urgent need for a systemic overhaul.” Moreover, this is not the only dumping site along the Mula river, claimed senior citizen and resident Akash Bokade. “There is also a dumping area at the beginning of a nullah that connects to the river here. If you face towards the flow of the river, there is a new dumping site on the left riverbank. In that entire patch, there are many sites where all kinds of garbage is dumped. To top it all, this trash is burnt at night by people dumping it to make space for more, forcing us to breathe polluted air,” he said. Bokade added that people are tired of the constant neglect of authorities. “It is because officials refuse to do their work that we have to run around, visiting each office, complaining about this and that. They are paid for their work with taxpayers’ money. We have other things to do and cannot be running around govt offices, reminding officials of their duties,” he added. Despite best efforts, citizens faced with lack of accountabilityResidents of Blue Ridge Township in Hinjewadi, under the umbrella of the Blue Ridge Association for Voluntary Engagement (BRAVE), have photographed trucks and registration numbers, mapped GPS coordinates, logged dumping activity dates, filed complaints across six channels, attended MPCB meetings in person, and compiled a chronological evidence trail spanning three months. But govt agencies still need to be nudged repeatedly to even acknowledge the issue, they said. “The Mula river at this point sits across boundaries of nine govt entities. No single agency owns the full problem. Each controls a slice — sewage, floodplain, water, roads, police. The result is diffusion of accountability and procedural paralysis. Even digital shortcut channels — like Centre’s Swachh Bharat app — simply route solutions back to the same local authorities that have already declined responsibility,” said township resident Anirudha Karandikar.OFFICIAL SPEAK This whole area is under the jurisdiction of three authorities, namely MIDC, Maan gram panchayat and PMRDA. The spot in question comes under PMRDA. So, if a private party is using land to do any activity, like allowing dumping, they are expected to take permission from PMRDA. We have not given any such permission. We have sent letters to PMRDA to act against the individual. Secondly, since the spot comes under the river’s blue/red line, we have asked MPCB to take punitive action. We said in a letter that any environmental damage because of this will not be our responsibility — Madan Shelar | Village development officer, Maan gram panchayat Clearance of garbage falls under the jurisdiction of the local governing body. Within Integrated Township Projects (ITPs) such as Blue Ridge Township, solid waste management on-premises is the responsibility of the township management, while waste management outside the township limits falls under the jurisdiction of the gram panchayat. The gram panchayat also has the authority to file an FIR against those responsible for illegal dumping. PMRDA’s role is limited to granting development permissions outside the gaothan area and does not extend to solid waste management, which remains the responsibility of the local authority concerned — Abhijit Chaudhari | PMRDA commissioner
