Bengaluru proposes user fee for waste disposal, with charges up to ₹400 per month

Bengaluru’s civic body, BBMP, through its offshoot Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Ltd (BSWML), has proposed a new user fee system for waste disposal, set to be introduced in the 2025-26 financial year. The initiative aims to collect fees from the city’s 46 lakh households and commercial establishments, generating an estimated ₹600 crore annually.

The user fee will be determined based on the built-up area of each household. For domestic users, the proposed fee ranges from ₹20 per month for homes with less than 600 sq ft of built-up area to ₹400 per month for properties exceeding 4,000 sq ft. There are six categories of fees in total, though the proposal does not clarify the fee structure for non-domestic users such as hotels and offices producing less than 100 kg of waste.

The idea of linking waste disposal fees to property size comes after several revisions of the original plan, which had initially linked fees to power consumption. The proposal was revised after consultations with Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, and it is now awaiting government approval. If passed, the fee will be added as a separate component in property tax.

For bulk waste generators, such as apartment complexes and office spaces, the fee is ₹12 per kg of waste, with an annual increment of ₹5 per kg. A 50% rebate is offered to those who adopt in-situ composting practices, reducing the cost to ₹3 per kg.

BSWML argues that it has the legal backing to collect the user fee, citing the Solid Waste Management Bye-laws of 2019 and the BBMP Act of 2020, along with the National Green Tribunal’s 2018 order, which upheld the ‘polluter pays’ principle.

Despite the government’s push for this new fee, some experts and environmental advocates have raised concerns. Pinky Chandran, a trustee of the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Round Table, pointed out that while the user fee is a necessary component of waste management, the focus should not be solely on revenue generation. She emphasized that issues like inadequate service delivery, lack of infrastructure, and poor waste segregation need to be addressed to improve waste management in the city.

As Bengaluru grapples with rising waste management challenges, the proposal reflects the city’s ongoing efforts to fund and streamline its waste disposal systems while balancing environmental sustainability.