Delhi's Bhalswa landfill, one of the capital's three major dumpsites, is slowly being brought down as the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) works to remove decades of accumulated waste from the 70-acre site.

The landfill has long been a major environmental and public-health concern, with decomposing garbage generating methane and repeated fires sending polluted smoke into nearby areas.

The MCD has set December 31, 2026, as the deadline to complete the cleanup. According to the latest official update, 99.07 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste had been cleared by July 31, with the remaining material being processed through a method known as biomining.

HOW BHALSWA IS BEING CLEARED

Under biomining, excavators dig into the old landfill and the recovered material is passed through screening and sorting systems.

Officials said around 65-75% of the material processed each day is inert waste, fine, soil-like residue left after screening. This is being transported to low-lying areas in parts of Delhi, including Narela and Rohini, for land filling.

Another 8-10% consists of construction and demolition waste such as broken concrete and bricks.

The remaining material includes Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF), a combustible portion of waste that is being sent to paper mills and cement plants for use as an alternative to coal.

The objective is therefore not merely to shift the garbage elsewhere, but to separate it and put different components to use wherever possible.

A MAJOR FIRE HIGHLIGHTED THE RISKS

Bhalswa's hazards were starkly demonstrated in April 2022, when a landfill fire continued for nearly two weeks.

A later study found that average PM2.5 levels increased by around 45-55% and PM10 concentrations by 40-50% during the blaze.

Methane produced by decomposing waste can contribute to the risk of such fires, making the landfill a continuing environmental concern.

THE CLOCK IS TICKING

The cleanup remains a massive logistical exercise. Around 4,000 tonnes of fresh waste reportedly continue to arrive at the site every day.

In mid-August, between 12,000 and 14,000 tonnes of legacy waste were being processed daily, according to a senior MCD official. The operation was estimated to cost around Rs 400 per tonne.

A government review in May said nearly 43 of the landfill's 70 acres had been cleared, with around 23.17 lakh metric tonnes of waste still remaining.

The scale of the challenge is evident from the fact that Bhalswa contained approximately 73 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste in June 2022, when the intensive cleanup began.

Weather conditions can further slow operations, with heavy rain turning the site muddy and extreme heat affecting work.

Bhalswa is part of Delhi's wider landfill-removal programme. The MCD has targeted the completion of work at Bhalswa and Okhla in 2026, while Ghazipur has been given a 2027 deadline.

For now, the garbage mountain is shrinking. But with fresh waste continuing to arrive, completing the cleanup, and preventing another landfill from reaching the same scale, remains Delhi's bigger challenge.