Central Pollution Control Board Conducts Inspection at Coimbatore's Vellalore Dump Yard
Officials from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) carried out a detailed inspection of the Vellalore dump yard in Coimbatore on Thursday. This facility is where the Coimbatore Municipal Corporation has been accumulating massive quantities of garbage collected from residential and commercial areas across the city.
NGT Directive Triggers CPCB Inspection
The inspection was conducted under specific directives from the National Green Tribunal (NGT), South Zone. On January 12, during proceedings of a new case, the NGT formally included CPCB as a respondent in the matter. The tribunal mandated that CPCB officials inspect the dump yard within a six-week timeframe and submit their comprehensive inspection report by February 28.
Activist Alleges Illegal Exclusion and Superficial Cleaning
KS Mohan, Secretary of the Kurichi-Vellalore Pollution Prevention Action Committee, raised serious objections regarding the inspection process. "The CPCB inspection is based on the petition filed by me," Mohan stated. "However, corporation officials prevented me from entering the dump yard during the inspection. This is completely objectionable, and in my view, renders today's inspection illegal."
Mohan further alleged that the Coimbatore Corporation engaged in extensive, last-minute preparations to present a misleading picture. "More than 500 sanitation workers were deployed over the past three days specifically to clean the area ahead of this inspection," he claimed. "The corporation had never undertaken such large-scale cleaning before, despite numerous public petitions highlighting the unhygienic conditions and foul odours. This cleaning was done merely as a facade because higher officials were coming to inspect. It is a literal manipulation of the actual reality within the dump yard."
RTI Data Reveals Systemic Deficiencies and Non-Compliance
A recent Right to Information (RTI) reply concerning a Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) inspection on January 30 highlighted significant operational failures. The response indicated that the waste processing facility at the dump yard is inadequate, directly leading to the accumulation of fresh waste. Furthermore, the report noted that the current progress of the biomining phase 2 project is insufficient to meet the daily target of processing 48,000 metric tonnes of waste.
This inspection follows an NGT order dated June 23, 2025, which directed the TNPCB to conduct monthly inspections of the Vellalore dump yard and file corresponding reports. TNPCB officials have been visiting the site monthly since that order and have issued various recommendations.
However, subsequent RTI replies have revealed a pattern of partial or non-compliance with critical recommendations. While some minor suggestions have been addressed, key directives remain unfulfilled. Most notably, the crucial recommendation to upgrade the leachate treatment plant has not been implemented. This upgrade is essential to fully treat leachate generated from both the sanitary landfill and the legacy waste, a necessary step to prevent groundwater contamination in the surrounding area.
The situation at Vellalore underscores ongoing challenges in municipal solid waste management and raises questions about transparency and accountability in addressing long-standing environmental and public health concerns.
