Context:
India’s rapidly urbanising landscape is facing a mounting solid waste crisis, with serious implications for public health, climate change, and urban governance. Editorial discussions highlight the need to shift from a linear “collect–dump” model to a circular economy framework, aligning with global climate commitments and national urban missions.
Key Highlights:
• Global Context and Climate Linkages
- At COP30 in Belem (November 2025), Brazil launched the NOW (Nationally Determined Outcomes on Waste) initiative to curb methane emissions from waste.
- The summit underscored circularity for inclusive growth, urging cities to treat waste as a resource rather than a liability.
- Scale of India’s Urban Waste Problem
- Indian cities are projected to generate 165 million tonnes of municipal solid waste annually by 2030, emitting over 41 million tonnes of greenhouse gases.
- By 2050, with an urban population of around 814 million, waste generation may rise to 436 million tonnes, intensifying health, economic, and climate risks.
- Government Initiatives and Regulatory Measures
- The Garbage Free Cities (GFC) Mission aims to make cities dump-free by 2026.
- Under Swachh Bharat Mission Urban 2.0, around 1,100 cities have been rated free of dumpsites, but true garbage freedom requires circular economy adoption across all 5,000+ urban local bodies.
- Construction and Demolition (C&D) Waste generates nearly 12 million tonnes annually. The Environment (Construction and Demolition) Waste Management Rules, 2025 will come into force from 1 April 2026.
- Waste Composition and Processing Gaps
- Over 50% of municipal waste is organic, suitable for composting and biomethanation.
- More than one-third is dry waste, with plastic waste posing the biggest recycling challenge due to poor segregation and weak markets.
- Institutional and Market Challenges
- Household-level segregation remains inadequate, undermining material recovery facilities.
- Recycling capacity for C&D waste is insufficient, despite its potential as cost-efficient construction material.
- Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is currently limited and needs expansion to all dry waste streams.
- Collaborative Platforms
- The Cities Coalition for Circularity (C-3), endorsed by Asia-Pacific nations in Jaipur, promotes inter-city knowledge sharing on circular practices.
Relevant Prelims Points:
- Circular Economy: Economic system aimed at eliminating waste, keeping materials in use, and regenerating natural systems.
- Methane: A high global warming potential (GWP) greenhouse gas, significantly emitted from unmanaged landfills.
- EPR: Policy mechanism making producers responsible for end-of-life management of products.
- C&D Waste Rules, 2025: Mandate segregation, recycling, and reuse of construction debris.
Relevant Mains Points:
- Urban waste mismanagement exacerbates urban flooding, air pollution, groundwater contamination, and climate vulnerability.
- Circular economy aligns environmental sustainability with job creation, entrepreneurship, and resource efficiency.
- Weak enforcement, lack of market confidence in recycled products, and fragmented governance hinder circularity.
- Way Forward:
- Strengthen source segregation through behavioural change campaigns.
- Expand EPR to cover all dry waste and integrate C&D waste norms with building bylaws.
- Invest in recycling infrastructure, market development for recycled products, and wastewater reuse linked with AMRUT and SBM.
- Promote city-to-city learning through platforms like C-3.
UPSC Relevance
- GS 2: Urban governance, public service delivery
- GS 3: Environment, climate change, sustainable urbanisation, circular economy