For the very first time, the city will have a database of households composting waste in situ. The civic body is undertaking this initiative in an attempt to shore up Bengaluru’s low rankings in Swachh Sarvekshan 2019, which is conducted by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
The city has performed dismally in the last two years: In 2018, of 485 cities (with a population of over one lakh), Bengaluru was placed 216. In 2017, the city stood at 210.
Senior officials in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) told
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The civic body had reached out to around 10 service providers, who sell products for home composting and large scale composting solutions for bulk generators, such as big apartment complexes, tech parks and kalyan mantaps. “Unfortunately, these service providers have no data. We hope to have all the data collated by the end of December before the Swachh Sarvekshan team visits the city,” the official said.
Random check
The Swachh Sarvekshan team is likely to visit the city in January, and will randomly choose a ward to inspect the ground realities. Explaining the process, the official said 30% of the marks are allotted for processing and disposal of waste, 27% for collection and transportation, 25% for sustainable sanitation, 5% for by-laws, 5% for innovation and best practices, 5% for IEC (information, education and communication) and 3% for capacity building.
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BBMP's Special Commissioner (Solid Waste Management) D. Randeep said that the data collation will have several benefits. “It is crucial to submit data about the quantum of waste that is getting composted in situ. A clear picture will emerge when we have the data in hand,” he said.
The data will also help the BBMP identify best practices and take them to others as a model to emulate, besides allowing the civic body to certify it in consultation with the Technical Advisory Committee. That apart, the data will prove helpful in the light of a proposal to incentivise composters through rebate in garbage cess. “The numbers could then be integrated with the property tax GIS database,” he added.
Night rounds a must for zonal officials
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has been taking various steps to address the garbage problem in the city, right from appointing marshals to clearing and beautifying black spots.
It has been observed that a lot of garbage dumping happens at night in public places, near water bodies, inside stormwater drains and vacant sites. It is here that marshals play an important role in apprehending offenders and levying a fine.
However, the BBMP now is hoping to keep a stricter vigil across the city. Towards this end, all the zonal commissioner have been instructed by BBMP Commissioner N. Manjunath Prasad to go on night rounds in their jurisdictions to prevent indiscriminate dumping of waste and creation of black spots.
According to sources, the commissioner had orally directed all the zonal joint commissioners, superintendent engineers and assistant executive engineers to conduct night inspections at least two times a week. These zonal officers have been directed to submit a report on the observations and action taken to the commissioner and special commissioner on a weekly basis.
BBMP's Special Commissioner (Solid Waste Management) D. Randeep said many zonal officials had already begun their rounds. He added that a circular in this regard would be issued shortly.
Submission of names
Individual homes that compost the waste they generate may submit their names by visiting https://goo.gl/UnS7xq , while bulk generators, such as kalyan mantaps, convention centres, tech parks and apartment complexes., may visit https://goo.gl/KJbmuW .