Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

Waste management in India

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The solid waste policy in India specifies the duties and responsibilities for hygienic waste management for cities and citizens of India. This policy was framed in September 2000, based on the March 1999 Report of the Committee for Solid Waste Management in Class 1 Cities of India to the Supreme Court, which urged statutory bodies to comply with the report’s suggestions and recommendations. These also serve as a guide on how to comply with the MSW rules. Today,it is one of the world's most disposed areas (the place where more garbages is thrown). In India, many dangerous materials including plastics are observed in most Indian landfills. Both the report and the rules, summarised below, are based on the principle that the best way to keep streets clean is not to dirty them in the first place. So a city without street bins will ultimately become clean and stay clean. They advocate daily doorstep collection of "wet" (food) wastes for composting, which is the best option for India. This is not only because composting is a cost-effective process practiced since old times, but also because India’s soils need organic manures to prevent loss of fertility through unbalanced use of chemical fertilizers.

Contents

ASSOCHAM Report

According to the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM) predictions, "India will generate 130 million tonnes of e-waste by 2018 from the current 93.5 million tonnes in 2016. And by 2020, India is expected to generate 5.2 trillion tonnes of e-waste".

Laws

As per Rule 4 of the Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000, "every municipal authority is responsible for infrastructure for segregation and processing of municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as garbage".

IT initiatives

The Government of India launched a web application in 2016 to track the status of various kinds of wastes generated in India.

References

Waste management in India Wikipedia