Micro waste plants to be mandatory at Bengaluru's business establishments

Karnataka CM announces plan to deal with city's notorious garbage problem

It will be mandatory for small businesses to have micro waste treatment plants, said Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, a plan he believes will go a long way in dealing with Bengaluru’s notorious garbage problem.

Bommai was speaking on 'Fast Forward 2040' at the DH Bengaluru 2040 Summit on Friday.

Bommai, who holds the Bengaluru city development portfolio, said he was coming out with a new "citizen-friendly" plan. "We should have some control over the waste we generate. We can’t depend entirely on the government because after all, it’s our waste. We can reduce 5 to 20% of the waste we produce daily," he explained.

"There’s the technology with which we can have plants (100 kg to two tonnes) in commercial establishments, hotels, malls, convention centres and so on. Wet waste can be used to produce manure that can be consumed by the Agriculture Department," he said. "I’ll make it compulsory for all commercial establishments to have this."

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Bommai conceded that waste management was "the greatest challenge", pointing out that Bengaluru generated 5,000 tonnes of waste daily. "Imagine how one can manage this. Waste management has to be decentralised," he added.

Stormwater drains are another focus area for Bommai. "Major water drains are causing floods, especially in low-lying areas. The length of the entire drain network is 800 km, of which we’ve developed 400 km. The remaining 400 km will be done this year at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore and the detailed project report is getting ready. This will take care of floods during heavy rains," he promised.

Roads and traffic

The chief minister said he was pushing for separate plans for roads and traffic. "The right kind of traffic movement should happen on the right kind of roads," he said.

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"We have identified 12 high-density corridors. It went through rough weather. There were some irregularities," he said. "I’ve asked officials to redo the whole thing legally. I don’t want any illegalities in the name of development. Once the corridors are ready, there will be seamless signals with an easy flow of heavy traffic. If that’s taken care of, then our arterial and sub-arterial roads can be managed better."

The chief minister is also keen on pushing the long-delayed Peripheral Ring Road project. “We’ve decided to tender the project soon. A lot of traffic that enters the city can be avoided,” Bommai said.

Ease of living

Bommai noted that the cost of land in the city "is so alarming" and "mostly artificial".

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He promised to make it easy for citizens to own a house. "I’m easing things out by unlocking land for housing. Everybody wants a house but it's so difficult for a common man to get a 20x30 site," he said. "We will have a system in which land conversion will go online and plan approvals will happen automatically based on the master plans. The land cost will come down with contactless approvals."

The chief minister recounted his Budget promise of opening Namma Clinics in every BBMP ward. "Ward clinics, four new super-speciality hospitals and an independent health services team will make up a new health system for Bengaluru," he said.

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