BENGALURU: After having scraped through the garbage crises more than once, the BBMP seems to be getting its act together. It now plans to rope in resident welfare associations, NGOs, self-help groups and even the NCC, NSS and Scouts and Guides in effectively managing waste.
Since 2011, civic agency is struggling to handle city’s garbage disposal problem. BBMP has seven waste processing units where segregated waste is being sent. However problems related to segregation at source, littering and transportation of waste persist.
In order to manage solid waste better, the 2017-18 budget has allocated `898.94 crore, which constitutes 10 per cent of the total budget.
Some of the measure proposed include opening of decentralised compost centres at the ward level, making segregation of waste compulsory, providing two dustbins and one bag free of cost to each household, educating citizens on converting wet waste to compost and opening compost purchasing centres in all the 198 wards.
Speaking to Express, N S Ramakanth, a member of the BBMP expert committee on solid waste management, said the biggest challenge before BBMP is implementation of the proposals. “To monitor collection of segregated waste and littering, BBMP proposes to recruit marshals for which it has allocated `7 crore. Within a year or two, this amount will be recovered by way of of penalties, if it is enforced effectively,’’ he said.
On the concept of compost centres in parks and other places at the ward level, Ramakanth said this will avoid transportation. “Waste should be segregated and disposed of scientifically where it was generated. This reduces lot of problems,’’ he said.
He also pointed out that the budget makes provision for giving special concession for apartment dwellers in garbage cess for taking up composting at their place.