The door-to-door waste collection system is set to undergo some drastic changes. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) plans to engage one service provider for every three wards, extend the contract period to a minimum of three years and introduce four-wheel tippers, mostly electric or CNG-enabled. The palike has also proposed to do away with the present system of sending separate vehicles for collecting wet and dry waste.
The proposed changes are expected to come up for a detailed discussion in the next board meeting of Bengaluru Solid Waste Management (BSWM) Ltd, headed by Rakesh Singh, Additional Chief Secretary of Urban Development department. Once the changes are finalised, BSWM — which reports to BBMP — plans to float fresh tenders for door-to-door waste collection by tweaking conditions accordingly, sources said.
At present, the civic body has engaged a different service provider for every ward. While contractors of 113 wards were selected through a tender process in 2020, the BBMP extended the services of existing contractors in the remaining wards due to issues including litigation and heavy political lobbying. This time, the BBMP plans to increase the contract period to 3 or 5 years.
Another major change being considered is the use of electric and CNG vehicles in at least 70% of the total fleet of auto tippers. Sources said three-wheeler autos will be replaced with four-wheeler vehicles having two compartments — one for wet waste and another for dry waste. It’s however not sure whether the BBMP plans to procure these vehicles or the service provider is expected to provide the required fleet.
Not all are, however, happy with the BBMP dropping its present system of sending two separate vehicles. “It’s too early for the civic body to drop the system which was introduced very recently. Citizens were beginning to understand segregation. Just when the system is getting stabilised, the BBMP should not backstep,” Shwetha Urs, who has been volunteering on solid waste management related affairs in the city, said. Waste, she said, will get mixed up if the same vehicle is sent as it happened in the past.
Shakeela Banu, a resident of JP Nagar, suggested that the BBMP must focus on creating awareness about composting of wet waste locally. “Our lane with 80 houses has been composting wet waste without any issues. We receive around 550 kg of wet waste a month. Why should the wet waste be sent to processing plants or landfills,” she wondered.
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