Supreme Court pulls up AAP government over alarming garbage piles in Delhi

The Supreme Court on Friday pulled up the Delhi government over garbage disposal in the city. The apex court expressed its displeasure about garbage piling up at various places in the city.

"Forty-five metres of the height of garbage in places are alarming," the division bench, headed by Justice Madan Lokur said. 

"It's a bully who blames others for problems. Don't say MLAs have no responsibility in keeping the city clean. You have a large number of MLAs and you must ask them to spread awareness about keeping the city clean," the SC said.

"What are your plans to clear garbage?" the court asked the government. "You have to plan for the future. You don't have to react to a situation."

The court asked the government to convene a meeting on garbage disposal in the city. All stakeholders, including the MCD, will be part of it. The Delhi government in the past has blamed the Centre for inefficiency in handling dengue and chikungunya, both vector-borne diseases. 

The court also said that garbage in the city can increase other diseases, including bird flu. A city zoo has been shut down after bird flu cases led to deaths of several migratory birds.

The court was hearing the matter regarding the suicide of parents of a child who died due to dengue in Delhi in 2015. Laxmichandra and Babita had jumped to death from a four-storey building after their son Avinash Rout, 7, died of dengue. 

The Delhi government was also rebuked by the apex court over the spread of dengue, which killed at least 21 people in the capital city in 2016. A total of 7,400 cases of chikungunya and 3,000 dengue cases were reported this year.