BENGALURU: City-based waste management experts have accused Shalini Rajneesh, Chief Secretary to the Government of Karnataka, of submitting false information in an affidavit to the principal bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT).
The affidavit regarding compliance with Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, and other environmental issues was submitted by Rajneesh on February 6.
As per the affidavit, the total Construction and Demolition (C&D) waste generated in Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) limits is 4,750 tonnes per day (TPD). Out of this, 1,750 TPD (nearly 37%) is being processed, leaving a gap of 3,000 TPD. However, experts say this is a false or misleading representation of the status of C&D waste management in the city.
Bengaluru currently has two designated C&D waste processing facilities by BBMP. Although the total capacity of both units put together is 1,750 TPD, the amount of waste received by the units is astonishingly low.
An investigative report by Bangalore Mirror in November last year highlighted that Between April and October 2024, both the C&D processing units in the city had received barely 10,000 tonnes of C&D waste for processing. Rajesh Korah, co-owner of both units, had informed BM that while 461 tonnes of the waste was received in April, 696 tonnes was sent for processing in May, 776 tonnes in June, 390 tonnes in July, 1,628 tonnes in August, 2,233 tonnes in September, and 3,690 tonnes in October. Roughly calculated, these numbers translate to 47.6 tonnes of waste every day being sent for processing, against Rajneesh’s claim of 1,750 tonnes per day.
Sources say the units are still receiving more or less the same amount.
“The two units are hardly receiving any waste from the city. Only in November last year, as an exception, nearly 17,000 tonnes, which is a little over 500 tonnes a day, reached these processing plants. Rajneesh has tried to deceive NGT by stating the capacity of the plants as the total waste being processed. Such misrepresentation by a senior government official to NGT points to all that is wrong with the system,” said a source.
Experts also point to the current gap in the amount of C&D waste generated and the capacity of processing units. Notably, the affidavit informs the tribunal that BBMP has prepared detailed project reports to establish C&D waste processing units under four packages, each package to handle 750 TDP of C&D waste in the public-private partnership model, and the tenders are invited and in process.
“To effectively manage C&D waste generated in the city, we need C&D waste processing units that can process 4,750 tonnes per day. Although BBMP has invited tenders to set up waste processing units, it has recorded zero participation so far,” said a reliable source.
The Karnataka government’s draft policy for effective management of C&D waste in the state, including Bengaluru, expected to come into effect from April 1, 2025, mentions penalties for illegal disposal. The document has proposed a penalty of Rs 8,000 per ton of C&D waste dumped on bulk generators.
“The provision to penalise bulk C&D generators for illegal dumping should be strictly enforced. If BBMP imposes this fine on defaulters, the total amount per day would be to the tune of Rs2.5 crore. The majority of the waste being generated in Bengaluru is from service providers such as BMRCL, NHAI, Indian Railways, airport authorities, CPWD, GAIL, BBMP, BWSSB, BESCOM, KPTCL, BDA, PWD, etc. However, none of these agencies are paying penalties,” said a city-based solid waste management expert.
