Private players to take charge of Bengaluru's waste for 30 years

Bengaluru: If the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Ltd (BSWML) has its way, two to four private companies will take full control of the city’s waste management, handling approximately 5,500 tonnes of waste daily for the next 30 years. The private players – who are expected to invest Rs 2,850 crore on infrastructure – will be paid through tipping fees, which is based on the volume of waste they collect and dispose of.

As each company will be responsible for managing the entire waste process — from collection and transportation (C&T) to processing and disposal (P&D), there are concerns that the system is susceptible to misuse and monopoly. 

Earlier this month, BSWML floated tenders for appointing concessionaires to execute integrated solid waste management facilities, including door-to-door collection and transportation. The tenders – divided into four packages like Yelahanka and Dasarahalli, RR Nagar and West, East and Mahadevapura, South and Bommanahalli – were invited amid a battle in the high court where the fate of 2023 C&T tenders is yet to be decided.

According to the tender documents, BSWML has agreed to pay 75 per cent of the total approved tipping fee for C&T services, while the remaining 25 per cent is allocated for processing and disposal. Not more than 20 per cent of the total waste received at the processing facilities should be sent to the landfills, the document states. Private entities will however face “strict action” only when the processing of waste falls below 50 per cent for six or more months in a year. 

This, experts say, does not incentivise performance as large component of the bill is linked to the quantity of waste generated and not how much is scientifically processed. 

Considering a tipping fee of Rs 2,300 per tonne for C&T, the total cost of all four packages comes to a minimum of Rs 550 crore per annum. BSWML may have to spend a another Rs 160 crore a year for the P&D, going by the tipping fee of Rs 650 a tonne. The project cost will go up dramatically if the private firms do not expect such a revenue from processing.     

Big players

The new tender proposes to bring big players, replacing the hundreds of contractors who were part of the system for several decades. One private firm has a provision to participate in two tenders, which might lead to just two agencies controlling the city’s waste management system. 

Officials said different conditions have been included in the tenders to make the project economically viable for the bidders but the BSWML’s expenditure will not go up. “In each package, the private company will upfront invest anywhere between Rs 700 crore and Rs 900 crore for creating waste to energy, composting and processing facilities. Going by the tipping fees, it will take about 12 to 18 years to breakeven,” the senior officer said.

The BSWML, he said, will be adding new infrastructure which are in compliance with solid waste management rules without making capital investments. 

Kalpana Kar, a solid waste management expert, said payments should not be based on tipping fees but linked to the total quantity of waste processed, which is key to the success of this project. She also pointed out that tenders go against the high court orders which had ruled that each package should not comprise more than five wards. “It is easier to manage smaller chunks than big players,” she said.