Rekha Gupta vows to clear Okhla landfill by year-end

New Delhi CM Rekha Gupta plans to clear Okhla landfill by December, planting 8,000 bamboo trees for a green transformation.

Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Friday said the garbage mountain at the Okhla landfill site will be cleared by December.

The CM made the remark while participating in a ‘Bamboo Plantation Drive’ at the site, for which 8,000 bamboo trees were planted to transform it into a ‘green spot’.

“The garbage mountain was 62 metres high when the BJP government came to power and we have brought it down to 41 metres in just 100 days,” Ms. Gupta said, adding that the previous Aam Aadmi Party government only “fooled” people in the name of clearing landfill sites.

“I have been telling (South Delhi MP) Ramvir Singh Bidhuri ji to start thinking from now itself over what school, college or infrastructure project should be developed at this 62-acre land,” Ms. Gupta said.

Lieutenant-Governor V.K. Saxena, who also took part in the drive, called the site “a kalank on Delhi” and urged the CM to finish the task two months prior to the deadline.

Speaking on the plantation drive, Mr. Saxena said planting bamboo had several benefits. “Bamboo releases more oxygen than other plants. They don’t need any special care and grow quickly. Also, if required, it can be chopped without any environmental clearance,” he said.