Mayapuri

Mayapuri
—  town  —
Coordinates
Country	India
Territory	Delhi
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)

Mayapuri is a locality in West Delhi. It used to be a major hub of small scale industries, but following recent government sanctions, most of the heavy metal industries moved out. The place is now a combination of residential flats (DDA and private), light metal factories and automobile service stations.

The area is mostly residential now, with major localities built by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA). These include Hari Enclave, Vikrant Enclave, MIG Flats and Maya Enclave. There are some major landmarks in this area like the Food Corporation of India, Metal Forging, New Era Public School and Din Dayal Upadhyay Hospital. Mayapuri is also one of the major bus terminals for the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC).

Mayapuri radiological accident

In April 2010, the locality of Mayapuri was affected by a serious radiological accident.^[1] An AECL Gammacell 220 research irradiator owned by Delhi University since 1968, but unused since 1985, was sold at auction to a scrap metal dealer in Mayapuri on February 26, 2010.^[2][3][4] The orphan source arrived at Deepak Jain' scrap yard in Mayapuri during March, where it was dismantled by workers unaware of the hazardous nature of the device. The cobalt-60 source was cut into eleven pieces. The smallest of the fragments was taken by Ajay Jain (no relation to Deepak Jain), who kept it in his wallet, two fragments were moved to a nearby shop, while the remaining eight remained in the scrap yard. All of the sources were recovered by mid-April and transported to the Narora Atomic Power Station, where it was confirmed that all radioactive material originally contained within the device was accounted for. The material remains in the custody of the Department of Atomic Energy^[5][6][7][8]

Eight people were hospitalised as a result of radiation exposure, where one later died.^[9]

Metal recycling activities

One of the main business at Mayapuri is the recycling of metal scraps and sale of salvage vehicle parts. It is, arguably, the biggest market for used automotive and industrial spare parts in India. Many traders from all over India come here to sell/ purchase old auto parts. Many small workshops specialised in different metals are active in the Mayapuri area. The safety of the scrap yards became a concern after the radiological accident which occurred in April 2010. The area is not equipped with radiation detectors or portics, despite being a common practice in steel recycling factories in the US and in most of the European countries. The presence of toxic heavy metals and of harmful chemicals in the waste generated by these activities presents a direct menace for the health of several ten thousands of people living in the area.

Major landmarks

Mayapuri is home to the following key landmarks:

• Din Dayal Upadhyay Hospital
• New Era Public School
• Metal Forging
• Food Corporation of India

Surrounding areas

Following are some key surrounding areas, some are small localities within Mayapuri.

• Subhash Nagar
• Rajouri Garden
• Hari Nagar
• Tilak Nagar
• Tihar Village
• Delhi Cantt
• IARI or Pusa
• Shadipur Depot
• Patel Nagar

See also

• Acerinox accident
• Goiânia accident
• List of civilian radiation accidents
• Orphan source
• Radiation accident in Mexico City
• Radioactive scrap metal

References

1. ^ The New York Times: Scrap metal radiation raises concerns in India
2. ^ AERB press release. April 29, 2010.
3. ^ http://www.hindustantimes.com/Source-of-Mayapuri-radiation-traced-to-Delhi-Univ-chemistry-lab/Article1-536847.aspx
4. ^ Origin of Cobalt-60 traced to Delhi University
5. ^ Scrap Metal Radiation Raises Concerns in India
6. ^ AERB press release. May 18, 2010.
7. ^ AERB press release. May 5, 2010
8. ^ Radiation response team recovers all Cobalt-60 source from Mayapuri
9. ^ Robert Johnston, Mayapuri orphaned source

External links

• The Hindu: lessons from Mayapuri
• Article in Robert Johnston's database of radiological incidents