Waste generation and management status in the fast-expanding Indian cities: A review

Abstract

ABSTRACT India is witnessing the formation of many densely populated megacities where management of burgeoning wastes, both municipal solid waste (MSW) and industrial hazardous waste (IHW), has become a very critical issue. The city municipalities are showing their inability to manage the waste efficiently. In this paper, the core indicator of environmental pressure, i.e., per capita municipal solid waste (MSW) generation for the top 10 most populous Indian cities and their trend over the years, has been ascertained to understand the severity of the problem. The study finds that the MSW generation per capita is increasing in all the top 10 populated cities of the country. In terms of growth of MSW generation, the city Surat and Delhi grew alarmingly at the rate of 2172% and 1036%, respectively, during the period 1971 to 2015. The level of per capita waste generation of three large Indian cities, i.e.,, Chennai, Kolkata, and Mumbai, was almost at par the level of OECD member countries. All the 10 cities are broadly indicating the existence of “coupling,” i.e., the standard of living increments was associated with an increase in MSW generation per capita. The city of Mumbai is also facing the challenge of managing the growing IHW generation as well. However, the city municipalities are helplessly witnessing untreated waste lying for months and years at dumpsites. The reported case of contaminated waste dumping sites raising concern toward imminent health hazards for the city dwellers. To counter the waste-related health hazards, the municipalities the top 10 cities first required to launch “generators as segregators” program for efficient handling of generated waste followed by pay-as-you-throw (PAYT) system to discourage waste generation without any delay. Implications: The burgeoning per capita municipality solid waste (MSW) generation for the top 10 most populated Indian cities and their upward trend through 1971 to 2015 calls for the need for scientific disposal of waste and policies to encourage waste minimization with the adoption of cleaner technologies. A complete mismatch between population increase and waste processing capacity increase, in the case of the top 10 populous cities of India, is raising a concern toward imminent health hazards for the city dwellers. This paper depicted the dismal MSW and IHW management performance in populous Indian cities and proposed a strategy for realistic measurement and management of waste.