Horticulture waste catches fire in sectors 50 & 117

Noida: A pile of horticulture waste caught fire early Monday morning in Meghdootam Park, Sector 50, and the green belt of Sector 117. Late last month, horticulture waste dumped at a vacant plot near Logix mall caught fire and took days to douse. The incident sounded underscored the potential threat of mounds of dry leaves and horticulture waste lying across city’s parks, green belts and roadsides catching fire. While the problem of dry leaves has been exacerbated due to the fall season, several sectors like 50, 51, 71, 72, 7x, 62, and 44 still await redress. In some places, dry leaves are even dumped over PNG gas pipeline. In Greater Noida too, residents have complained about mounds of dry leaves and plants. Despite complaints, there’s been no action.“Today, a fire broke around 7am in Meghdootam Park, Sector 50. The dry leaves collected in one corner of the park caught fire. The fire tender reached at 8am and doused the fire. We requested the contractor of the horticulture department several times not to keep horticulture waste in the park as there was a risk of fire. But the staff did not pay any heed. Similarly, dry horticulture waste is dumped in the C block park of Sector 51. We have requested the authority to get it removed several times, but no one is ready to listen,” said Sanjeev Kumar, RWA general secretary of Sector 51.“Due to the fire, residents living in neighbouring societies of the park encountered polluted air early in the morning. Some even found it difficult to breathe. Every day, the residents of the city have to face these problems, which can be avoided if the Authority pays attention,” said Kumar.A similar incident happened in the green belt of Sector 117 on Monday. “Around 3 am, there was a spark in the transformer installed in the green belt near gate 2 of Sector 117. The dry leaves dumped in the green belt caught fire as a result. Fortunately, the guard deployed at the gate was alert and managed to avert a mishap. He woke up the residents of nearby houses who activated their submersibles and collectively helped in extinguishing the fire, but with great difficulty, as the fire had spread to a large part of the green belt. The fire had also spread to a large number of leaves gathered nearby. A major untoward incident was averted,” said Kosinder Yadav, RWA president of Sector 117.