Even after almost two years of the launch of the door-to-door garbage collection campaign, the recycling plant of the Dhanbad Municipal Corporation is yet to be established.

As a result of this, garbage collected from houses has been lying all over the district. The civic body is also yet to carry out segregation of dry and wet waste, while majority of the houses in 55 wards have not received garbage bins as promised under the integrated solid waste management programme of the DMC.

The project, worth Rs 274 crore, was launched by the DMC on June 27, 2019, in association with Hyderabad-based agency Ramky Enviro Engineers.

“The town lacks sufficient primary garbage transfer stations. Consequently, garbage compactors stations situated in densely populated areas generate foul smell posing the risk of outbreaks of epidemics,” Bartand Chamber of Commerce Kumar Madhurendra Singh complained.

“We can’t sleep during the night due to the humming sounds of the number of mosquitoes as well as the foul smell coming out of the unattended garbage,” he added.

Prem Bachhan Das, a resident of Jharia alleged that all the garbage is dumped in the open by the authorities.

The DMC has identified 17 acres of land of the Jharkhand Mineral Area Development Authority in the Aamjhar area of Baliapur block for lease to establish the plant. However, the JMADA has not yet given its consent to the civic body.

“The soil testing work for the land identified at Aamjhar is being conducted by the concessionaire for the solid waste management project, Ramky Enviro Engineers. After the completion of work we will approach the district administration for the transfer of the land,” Anand Raj, City Manager (Sanitation) of the DMC, said.

Sources in Ramky Enviro Engineers however confirmed that they have not been given any intimation with regard to soil testing work at Aamjhar.