Fire at a garbage dump in an abandoned quarry in Tiruppur district’s Mudhalipalayam village was brought under control after several hours of operation by firefighters.

In the drawn-out operation, the firefighters utilised several tankers of water to douse the flames. According to the villagers, who faced intense suffocation owing to the fumes, smoke continued to rise from a portion of the dump even after the fire was extinguished.

The fire, local residents alleged, was caused deliberately by anti-social elements at the site, which the Tiruppur City Corporation had used to dump unsegregated wastes for decades.

The local body, which was found to be wanting in solid waste management by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB), was directed by the Madras High Court in recent months to clear the several thousands of tonnes of accumulated garbage within a specific time frame.

Notably, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) had asked the TNPCB to investigate the abandoned quarry in Mudalipalayam-Nallur, in response to a public petition complaining about dumping of solid waste by the Tiruppur City Corporation and seeking declaration of the location as a polluted zone.

The residents of Mudhalipalayam had, earlier this month, extracted a commitment from the Revenue authorities for proper disposal of the garbage, before accepting to take part in the Grama Sabha meeting conducted to commemorate World Environment Day.

The authorities had assured the residents that the scope for disposal of garbage-based pellets through cement companies will be fully explored.