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Video Producer: Maaz Hasan
Video Editor: Puneet Bhatia
On Monday, 28 March, a massive fire broke out at east Delhi's Ghazipur landfill site, stuffing the residential localities nearby with smoke. As per the Delhi Fire Service (DFS), 90 firefighters had been working for nearly 24 hours to douse the fire.
On 29 March, I went to meet the residents of a neighbouring colony to gauge the effect the fire had on them. Fortunately, no casualties were reported in the incident.
Mohammad Rafi, a poultry seller, says, "The situation yesterday (28 March) was such that the whole colony was covered in smoke, and we were feeling suffocated. It was very bad. We were unable to breathe. The heat coming out of there was unbearable. The fumes are still coming out, it's in front of you."
Shakeel Ahmad, a tea seller, was also worried. He tells me that people in the locality are afraid and they hope that the fire doesn't escalate and claim lives like the previous year.
This isn't the first time that an incident of fire has been reported at the tallest mountain of garbage in India. Last year alone, as per the fire department, four incidents of fire were reported from the dumping site.
Not just fire, for years, residents have been complaining about the pollution in the locality due to the landfill.
"The pollution is in front of you. With oxygen, toxic gasses go in and out of our bodies," says Javed, a resident.
Aasma adds, "When it rains, the foul smell spreads all over. Then, staying here becomes very difficult."
Residents have been demanding a solution to the problems they have been facing over the massive garbage dump.
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