Bengaluru's 2,125 bulk generators to pay service charge for waste disposal

Bengaluru: Civic authorities in Bengaluru have issued notices to 2,125 bulk waste generators, including apartment complexes, hotels and community halls, asking for details about how they dispose of their daily waste. 

Entities that do not have their own on-site compositing facilities will be charged a service fee of Rs 12 per kilo to collect and process the waste, according to Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Ltd (BSWML). Establishments with in-situ processing facilities will be required to pay Rs 3 per kg. 

While the official order states that the BSWML can increase the charges by Rs 5 every year, the bylaws cap the increase at 5 per cent. 

The BSWML estimates that Bengaluru has 2,415 bulk waste generators, which are defined as those producing over 100 kg of waste per day or having over 5,000 square metres of built-up area. Ninety percent of these establishments have already received the notices with a seven-day deadline to respond, officials said. 

No notices have been issued to independent houses or commercial establishments which generate less than 100 kg of waste. The BSWML has drafted a separate proposal to levy user fees based on the built-up area, but the state government is yet to give approval. 

Not all are happy

The notices have come as a shock to hoteliers and apartment complexes that do not have on-site waste processing facilities. 

Some say the BSWML charges are 5-10 times higher than what they currently pay. They also feel that the notices lack clarity, especially because the BSWML does not have the authority to directly collect waste from bulk generators as per the solid waste management byelaw. 

There is no clarity about dry and sanitary waste collection either. 

PC Rao, president of Bruhat Bangalore Hoteliers’ Association, called the user fee of Rs 12 "unscientific and abnormal". 

"Presently, hotels pay about Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 a month, which could go up to Rs 50,000. This is over and above property tax and other charges. The BSWML should have sought objections before finalising the user fee. We will soon make representations to the authorities against it," he said. 

Valli Srinivasan, member of the Bangalore Apartments Federation, said many apartment complexes had tied up with BBMP-empanelled vendors to process waste. 

"The notices do not offer clarity about continuing such arrangements. A fee of Rs 3 per kg has been fixed for establishments with on-site processing units. Does this fee cover dry waste disposal? This is not clear. Many apartment complexes have tied up with different vendors for disposing of wet, dry and sanitary waste," she said. 

A senior BBMP official said some empanelled vendors dump waste collected from bulk generators in auto tippers, which end up in BBMP-run processing plants or landfills. 

"The user fee is a temporary measure until bulk waste generators make their own arrangements to process the waste directly or through a service provider," he said. 

The BBMP spends about Rs 8 per kg on the collection and disposal of waste. "The Rs 12 per-kg fee was finalised as there is a provision to levy penalty for not processing waste," the official said.