“Turning this into a dumping ground will affect our health as well as our crops. We are fighting to save our lineage and our crops,” says Chetan Tyagi, a resident of Mirpur village.
Mirpur Hindu village in Ghaziabad district lies along the Delhi–Uttar Pradesh border, and the atmosphere here is now marked by growing mistrust and unrest.
The residents of this village, most of whom are farmers, have been protesting for over a month now against a proposed solid waste management and waste-to-energy plant in the area.
They say it could severely affect their agricultural yield, groundwater, and health, and are demanding that it be relocated away from residential and farming land.
Tensions came to a head on 15 February, when a clash broke out between the police and protesting villagers. Protesters allege that around 50 to 60 people were injured in a lathi-charge, a claim the police deny.
Protestors Allege Brutality, Police Deny Excessive Force
Showing the injury marks on her arm, 35-year-old Manisha Tyagi said, “The police acted brutally against women and small children in the village. We did not engage in any vandalism; we were peacefully protesting. What was the reason to beat us?”
Another local farmer Rajendra, alleges that his hand was fractured in the lathi-charge and that his 22-year-old son was severely beaten, adding,
“Four policemen were continuously hitting my young son with batons that day.”
Several minor children and women present at the protest site also displayed injury marks, accusing the police of using force.
However, denying the allegations, SHO Manoj Kumar of Tronica City police station told The Quint that protesters broke the gate lock and entered the under-construction plant. He said that despite being persuaded to leave, they refused, blocked the road, and allegedly pelted stones at the police.
“Our intention was not to carry out a lathi-charge; some mild force may have been used while dispersing the crowd,” he said.
Meanwhile, the municipal corporation has filed a case against 150 unidentified people and five named individuals on charges of vandalism.
‘A Mountain of Garbage at Our Doorstep’
The proposed plant in Mirpur Hindu village was initially part of Loni municipality’s solid waste management plan. However, due to operational difficulties, it was handed over to the Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation about three months ago.
The plant was originally planned with a capacity of 125 metric tonnes per day, which was increased to 300 tonnes in 2020. According to Municipal Health Officer Mithilesh Kumar, once completed, the plant will be able to handle 1,600 to 2,000 metric tonnes of garbage per day in the future, with about 500 metric tonnes to be processed in the initial phase.
However, locals remain wary of the long-term impact of the project, given its close proximity to residential areas.
RM Malik, a village resident and retired soldier, told The Quint, “Dumping grounds are usually built far from residential areas, but here a mountain of garbage is being raised between temples and homes. This will increase pollution and seriously affect people’s health. It is a reckless endangerment of public health.”
Legally, a landfill must be located at least 100 meters away from a river, 200 meters from a pond, 200 meters from highways, and 500 meteres from residential areas. It must also be at least 20 kilometres away from an airport. Plants with a capacity of more than five tonnes per day must have an adequate buffer zone around them.
But, a Local farmer leader, Neeraj Tyagi alleges,
"Several villages lie within 500 meters of the site, and around 16–17 villages fall within a two-kilometre radius.”
Furthermore, The Quint’s investigation revealed that in 2020, in a case related to Loni’s waste management, the then District Magistrate of Ghaziabad had informed the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that the proposed Mirpur Hindu plant was located about 7 kilometres from residential areas.
"The government says the waste will be scientifically processed, but we know that in the end, it will become a mountain of garbage here. The proposed plant will bring in garbage from across the Ghaziabad district.”Neeraj Tyagi
Villagers Fear Pollution, Health Risks and Loss of Livelihood
Beyond the obvious health concerns, residents also fear that the project could worsen the area’s vulnerability to flooding. Manisha Tyagi, a local resident, said, “When the Yamuna’s water level rises, this area gets flooded. If there is a flood, garbage from the dumping ground will reach our homes and kitchens.”
"The gases emitted from the waste will make our children sick. People here already don’t live long lives — what kind of future will this plant leave for the next generations? We do not want this dumping ground.”Manisha Tyagi
Under the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, no landfill site can be permitted within a recorded floodplain area of the past 100 years.
However, responding to flood-related allegations, Loni SDM M Deepak Singhanwal told The Quint that Mirpur Hindu village does not fall within the “floodplain” area, and that the proposed site complies with regulations.
Residents also fear the project will endanger cattle in the area. “There is a cowshed housing 300–400 cows within the under-construction plant premises, and just a few steps away stands another government-run cowshed with 500–700 cows. A dumping ground is being built next to these shelters, posing a serious threat to the animals’ health. The Yogi government talks about protecting cows, but this decision itself puts them at risk,” says Tyagi.
In protest, villagers have been holding a peaceful sit-in inside a temple complex for the past 45 days.
Seventy-five-year-old Brijesh Devi, who is part of the movement, says, “Even if we lose our lives, we will not allow a dumping ground to come up around us. We don’t have proper schools or hospitals here, but instead the government wants to give us a mountain of garbage. What kind of development is this?”
A Decade-Long Dispute
This is not the first time residents of Mirpur Hindu village have opposed the project.
Around 120 acres were earmarked for the plant in 2012, but sustained local resistance prevented authorities from taking possession of the land for years. It was only on 12 June 2020, in the presence of police, that the administration took control of the site and began construction across roughly 8.2 hectares.
According to Municipal Health Officer Mithilesh Kumar, nearly 70 percent of the work has now been completed.
“We have seen in nearby areas that wherever garbage accumulates, the air, water, and farming are all affected. During the rains, contaminated water seeps into the ground."Neeraj Tyagi, Farmer leader
Neeraj Tyagi alleges, “A foundation stone was laid here for a degree college, but later we found out that a dumping ground was being built instead.”
Meanwhile, the municipal corporation says the plant is essential for scientific disposal of the city’s waste and will be constructed in compliance with all environmental standards.
“The Municipal Corporation of Ghaziabad has spent ₹12 crore on the plant and on constructing a separate access road, along with ₹18 crore from government funds. The private vendor operating the plant has invested around ₹35 crore. All necessary legal permissions and no-objection certificates will be obtained before operations begin. Discussions with farmers and protesters are ongoing,” Dr Mithilesh kumar, City Health officer, Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam, told The Quint.
Health Risks of Living Near Landfills: What Evidence Shows
Several cities across the country have solid waste management facilities and landfill sites. To understand their impact on nearby residents, The Quint reviewed scientific studies and spoke to experts.
A June 2018 study published in the Indian Journal of Clinical Practice found higher levels of PM2.5 and PM10 within a two-kilometre radius of landfill sites, along with reduced lung capacity among nearby residents.
Elevated Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) levels and water hardness in the ground water in these areas indicate groundwater contamination. In other words, living near a landfill is not just an inconvenience, its proven to pose serious health risks.
Dr Richa Singh, Senior Research Scientist at University College Dublin, says that setting up a waste-to-energy plant near agricultural land or within a 500-meter buffer zone creates significant environmental and health risks.
"Such plants, especially those that burn mixed waste, emit hazardous pollutants like dioxins, furans, heavy metals, particulate matter, and sulfur and nitrogen oxides. Many of these are carcinogenic and persist in the environment for long periods."Dr Richa Singh
“These pollutants settle on soil and crops and enter the human body through the food chain, increasing the risk of cancer, hormonal disorders, and reproductive illnesses. A study by a CSIR lab in Kerala detected the presence of dioxins and furans in both air emissions and bottom ash. Locating such plants near agricultural areas increases the likelihood of these pollutants reaching crops, dairy products, and livestock, thereby raising the risk of prolonged exposure for local communities,” she adds.
Inadequate monitoring and weak enforcement in India further amplify the risks. The National Green Tribunal has previously fined several plants for non-compliance. Odours from such facilities have also been linked to stress, sleep disturbances, and a decline in quality of life among nearby residents.
Dr Singh further notes that human biomonitoring studies conducted in Europe have found higher levels of heavy metals and persistent organic pollutants in the blood and urine of people living within 1 to 3 kilometers of such plants, and similar warning signs are emerging in the Indian context as well.