Rapid urbanization has resulted in creating serious challenges for the urban local bodies in terms of meeting basic needs of ever expanding population. Urban solid waste management has become a major challenge due to increase in generation of waste and lack of adequate infrastructure of the urban local bodies coupled with financial constraints and lack of political will. It is estimated that the volume of waste would reach 165 million tonnes by 2031 and 436 million tonnes by 2050, if existing policies, programmes and management strategies are not adequately addressed.
The informal sector in urban solid waste management includes individuals, families, and private sector (micro-) enterprises providing waste management services, whose activities are neither organized, sponsored, financed, contracted, recognized, managed and taxed, nor reported upon by governmental authorities. Informal stakeholders dumpsites and at communal waste collection points, informal waste collectors, itinerant waste buyers, small junkshop dealers, and big waste go down owners. As per Report published by Vidhi on the welfare of informal sector involved in urban solid waste management it is estimated that waste pickers in this country recycle over 20% of the one fifty million tons of waste that is produced in India per day.
Role Of The Informal Sector in Urban Solid Waste Management in India and the need for Legal and Policy Change
The informal sector has not only played a crucial role in protecting the environment by ensuring that only nonrecyclable, non-biodegradable material enters the landfills but they have also been instrumental in reducing the burden on the natural resources and for these valuable contributions the informal sector clearly require recognition through policy change.
According to ‘What a Waste 2.0’ World Bank report, a focus on data, planning, financing and integrated urban solid waste management is desired to improve current situation of the informal sector by formalizing and integrating waste pickers into the economy and strengthening the recycling value chain.
Law as it exists today
The Indian Government with bringing into effect the Solid Waste Management Rules 2016 had a keen interest on the integration of ragpickers from the informal sector to the formal sector for which the Government introduced in the Rules the definition of “waste picker”. The Rules also introduced the duties of waste generator of segregating waste to handover to authorized rag-pickers and also allowed the State to prepare policy and strategy of urban solid waste management in consultation with stakeholders including representative of waste pickers, self helo group.
The Rules clearly provided that the state policies and strategies should acknowledge the primary role played by the informal sector of waste pickers, waste collectors and recycling industry in reducing waste and provide broad guidelines regarding integration of waste picker or informal waste collectors in the waste management system by starting a scheme on registration of waste pickers and waste dealers. Even the Plastic Waste Management Rules along with The National Environment Policy 2006 and National Action Plan for Climate Change, 2009 recognize the contribution of the informal sector in urban solid waste management and assign responsibility to the municipalities for engaging civil societies or groups working with waste pickers.
The cost of non-recognition
Since most States have not formulated any policies to safeguard the interest of the informal sector of waste pickers, this sector faces numerous forms of discrimination and their basic rights are repeatedly violated disregarding their contribution to society.
This has resulted in depriving this class the benefits of the government funded social schemes and other schemes like the SWATCH Survekshan Toolkit, a scheme launched by Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs (MOHUA) for formal integration of informal sector waste pickers into the waste management system.
Need for policy change. Lack of efforts from the States in timely formulating policies for safeguarding the interest of this informal sector has resulted in neglecting a very crucial stakeholder of the urban solid waste management system. It is believed that formalising the work of informal sector and integrating them into urban solid waste management will not only improve their living and working conditions but also make urban solid waste management more cost-efficient, as waste handling and transportation costs are reduced, land use for garbage dumps gets reduced, and recovered waste, particularly plastics, can be supplied to manufacturers.
As per the recommendations submitted by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on 17.03.2021 it has been to look at the issue of urban solid waste management in the country in a holistic manner. It is safe to believe that coupled with an upward trend in industrialization, rural migration, spending and an increasing propensity for capitalist consumption, the amount of waste generated in India will continue to increase rapidly with time.
Hence it is believed the local authorities and municipalities have to work towards organizing this informal sector by providing identification and incentives to the waste collectors so that the sector which contributes so much in the management of urban solid waste can take care of themselves.
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