BJP govts introduced waste cess on vacant plots in Karnataka: DK Shivakumar

Bengaluru: The BJP-led governments in the state and at the Centre introduced the policy of levying waste cess on vacant plots, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar reminded the Legislative Council on Thursday.

Outlining the state government’s plans for effective waste management in the state capital, the Deputy CM, who also holds the Bengaluru Development portfolio, said that the areas under the 28 Assembly Constituencies in the city had been divided into 33 segments. “Tenders have been invited for waste disposal across Bengaluru,” said Shivakumar, adding that four sites had been identified for setting up waste-to-energy plants for generation of gas and electricity.

The Deputy CM, responding to questions raised by BJP MLCs D S Arun and S Keshava Prasada, cited the rules laid out by the Centre under the Solid Waste Management Framework of 2016. He further added that the BJP government in Karnataka had, in 2020, adopted the Centre’s policy for levying a cess on waste collection on vacant plots.

Shivakumar admitted that a green curtain had been mounted alongside Palace Road during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Bengaluru, since garbage had been dumped on a vacant site on the road. However, the Deputy CM was quick to add that the government was drafting a new law to ensure vacant plots were kept clean.

Besides the large malls in Bengaluru that were now managing their own waste, 35,000 private citizens were disposing of their waste without any assistance from the government, said Shivakumar. Those offending rules concerning the safe disposal of construction debris would have cases filed against them by the police, said Shivakumar, adding that tenders had been floated for installation of CCTV cameras to ensure compliance to the guidelines.  

Shivakumar admitted that taking on the garbage mafia was an uphill battle. “The tenders invited for 198 wards of Bengaluru city during the BJP government’s tenure were obstructed. It was only after probes were ordered into irregularities that the tenders were cancelled, and new waste units set up,” he said.