Poor response to BMC’s plea for managing waste

Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s repeated calls asking big housing societies and bulk waste generators to set up waste management plants in their premises have fallen on deaf ears.

More than 65 housing societies are yet to respond to BMC’s pleas to carry out waste segregation and processing at source.

The civic body had identified 3,586 bulk waste generators across the city and issued notices to them to process and dispose of wet garbage at their premises themselves. The bulk generators included big housing societies, five-star hotels, malls and industries producing more than 100kg waste every day and having an area of more than 20,000 sq m. These entities were asked to provide facilities such as organic waste converters, vermicomposting and bio-methane in their backyard to treat waste at source.

Going by civic data however, as many as 2,347 housing societies have not yet replied or sought extension for setting up waste management plants.

Composting units have been set up at 383 societies whereas 856 societies have asked for an extension.

Taking stern action against incompetent Advance Locality Management (ALM) groups, the BMC has also decided to cancel registration of 209 ALMs for their failure to carry out waste segregation and disposal at source. ALMs are citizen’s groups working in their respective areas to create awareness about civic issues.

Civic activist Godfrey Pimenta said, “Lack of public awareness is one of the major reasons behind poor response to BMC’s pleas for waste management. The civic body needs to undertake a massive campaign to inculcate the importance of cleanliness.”