Scale of Waste Generation in India

• According to Union Ministry of State for Environment,

Forests and Climate Change, 62 million tonnes of
waste is generated annually in the country at present.
Out of which:
• 5.6 million tonnes is plastic waste,
• 0.17 million tonnes is biomedical waste,
• Hazardous waste generation is 7.90 million tonnes
per annum
• 15 lakh tonnes is e-waste.
• Only about 75-80 per cent of the municipal waste gets
collected and only 22-28 per cent of this waste is
processed and treated.
Latest Regulations of Government of India

• Solid Waste Management Rules (SWM) were

introduced in 2016 by Union Ministry of State
for Environment, Forests and Climate Change.
• These will replace the Municipal Solid Wastes
(Management and Handling) Rules, 2000,
which were in place earlier.
 Major highlights of the new SWM Rules, 2016

• Segregation at source
The new rules have mandated the source segregation of
waste in order to channelize the waste to wealth by recovery,
reuse and recycle. Waste generators would now have to now
segregate waste into three streams- Biodegradables, Dry
(Plastic, Paper, metal, Wood, etc.) and Domestic Hazardous
waste (diapers, napkins, mosquito repellents, cleaning agents
etc.) before handing it over to the collector.
All hotels and restaurants will also be required to segregate
biodegradable waste and set up a system of collection to
ensure that such food waste is utilised for composting /
biomethanation.
• Collection and disposal of sanitary waste
The manufacturers or brand owners of sanitary napkins are
responsible for awareness for proper disposal of such waste by the
generator and shall provide a pouch or wrapper for disposal of each
napkin or diapers along with the packet of their sanitary products.
• Collect Back scheme for packaging waste
As per the rules, brand owners who sale or market their products in
packaging material which are non‐biodegradable, should put in place
a system to collect back the packaging waste generated due to their
production.
• User fees for collection
The new rules have given power to the local bodies across India to
decide the user fees. Municipal authorities will levy user fees for
collection, disposal and processing from bulk generators. As per the
rules, the generator will have to pay “User Fee” to the waste collector
and a “Spot Fine” for littering and non-segregation, the quantum of
which will be decided by the local bodies.