Delay by BBMP in enforcing SWM user fee came under NGT scrutiny, risked cleanliness rankings of Bengaluru

Swachh Bharat Mission guidelines require municipalities to achieve at least 90% efficiency in user fee collection. The annual Swachh Survekshan survey, which ranks cities on cleanliness and waste management, also factors in user fee implementation. Without enforcing the fee, Bengaluru risks losing central financial assistance and slipping in national cleanliness rankings, the official said.

The Solid Waste Management Committee (SWMC), constituted by the National Green Tribunal (NGT), had repeatedly highlighted the failure of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) in enforcing the mandatory user fee for waste management in the city. This issue was raised multiple times during tribunal proceedings and meetings, as revealed in an internal note prepared by BBMP for introducing the user fee.

Despite framing the Solid Waste Management (SWM) bye-law in 2020 under the then BJP-led government in Karnataka, BBMP delayed its implementation. Ironically, the BJP is now opposing the fee

The BBMP’s user fee policy officially came into effect on April 1, two days after its announcement in the budget. The Urban Development Department (UDD) had already approved the proposal, though a senior BBMP official told The Hindu that the civic body had the independent authority to impose the fee under the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, issued under Sections 3, 6, and 25 of the Environment Protection Act, 1986. Additionally, several Centrally sponsored schemes have made user fee collection a key requirement.

The NGT Principle Bench, Delhi too, through multiple orders, emphasised the enforcement of the ‘Polluter Pays Principle’, which places the financial burden of waste management on those generating the waste.

According to BBMP’s internal note, the NGT has mandated periodic reports from State governments on SWM implementation. A special monitoring committee (SWMC), led by a retired Karnataka High Court judge and the Upa Lokayukta, has been tracking waste management progress in Bengaluru.

This committee has consistently criticised the BBMP for failing to enforce the user fee collection, despite it being a statutory requirement, a BBMP official said.

The SWM user fee derives its legal foundation from the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, which empowers the government to take measures to prevent and control environmental pollution. Under this Act, the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change issued the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, mandating that all waste generators, including households, businesses, and institutions, contribute financially to waste collection and disposal.