A city rising, a city buried: Bengaluru’s rubble crisis

Behind the steel and glass of India’s “Silicon Valley” lies an uncomfortable truth few see but all experience: mountains of rubble, dumped and forgotten. The city is drowning in its own construction, burying lakes and green spaces. Under the Construction and Demolition (C&D) Waste Management Rules, 2016, the responsibility for proper disposal of construction debris rests with the waste generators themselves, whether individuals or entities. In Bengaluru, the erstwhile Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (now replaced by the Greater Bengaluru Authority, GBA) was tasked with enforcing and overseeing the implementation of these regulations.

Bengaluru’s building boom is burying the city under a growing mountain of construction and demolition (C&D) waste. From 850 tonnes per day in 2015, it is expected to touch 4,500–5,000 tonnes daily by 2025. Until 2017, the city had no formal processing facility; today, it manages just 1,750 tonnes per day. Even with the civic authority’s plans to raise capacity to 3,000 tonnes per day, a vast share of debris will remain unmanaged. With limited capacity, much of this waste is illegally dumped into drains, vacant plots, wetlands and lakebeds, worsening flooding risks and accelerating the erosion of Bengaluru’s “green and blue” ecological identity. Piles of rubble in neighbourhoods from Sarjapur to Whitefield illustrate a city struggling to reconcile its infrastructure growth with sustainable planning.

Despite the scale of the problem, Bengaluru relies largely on a single recycler, Rock Crystal Pvt Ltd, which processes only 100–150 tonnes a day against a 1,000-tonne capacity. A second plant at Kannur, announced years ago, remains stuck in limbo. Of the eight official dump sites identified by the authorities, only three -- at Srinivasapura, Anjanapura, and Mallasandra -- are operational, all far from construction hotspots. High transport costs and lax enforcement make illegal dumping cheaper and easier, further undermining recycling efforts.

The gap between C&D waste generation and recycling in Bengaluru is both systemic and infrastructural. Though recycled aggregates are 15–20% cheaper, they have yet to gain acceptance due to poor awareness, outdated perceptions, and the absence of incentives. Even government projects remain exempt from any mandate to incorporate recycled products in civil construction.

The city recycles less than 5% of its C&D waste, far behind global leaders such as Tokyo and Singapore, where recycling rates hover between 80% and 100%. While concrete, steel, and bricks are partially salvaged, wood, gypsum, glass, and plastics are rarely recycled due to infrastructure gaps.

The 2022 floods in Bengaluru’s tech corridor highlighted the consequences of inaction, with rubble-choked drains intensifying waterlogging and causing losses of hundreds of crores. Informal waste workers, the backbone of debris management, remain unprotected and unrecognised, facing respiratory hazards and unstable incomes. What could be a pathway to green employment is instead a public health risk.

The C&D Waste Management Rule (2016) mandates source segregation, safe transportation, and reuse of recycled debris in public projects. A fine of Rs 10,000 per tonne is also imposed for illegal dumping and a tipping fee of Rs 134 per tonne for authorised disposal. Yet, enforcement is inconsistent, monitoring is weak, and incentives are absent.

Urban planning experts argue for aggregation hubs every three to four wards to streamline logistics and improve recycler access. Without such infrastructure and stronger enforcement, Bengaluru risks turning its C&D waste challenge into a long-term environmental liability.

Blueprint for a Circular City

Bengaluru’s mounting construction waste crisis is far from inevitable. A bold shift towards decentralised recycling plants through public-private partnerships, a steady feedstock supply for recyclers, and civic body-led logistics could dramatically boost capacity. Mandating recycled content in construction, paired with tax breaks and fast-track approvals, would generate steady demand. Lessons from Delhi’s recycled material mandates, Pune’s geotagging system, and Indore’s community-driven PPPs would create a robust domestic recycling market. Global leaders like Tokyo, Amsterdam and Singapore prove near-zero C&D waste is possible by transforming debris into roads, paver blocks and eco-friendly building materials. Bengaluru can emulate these successes through initiatives like the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Circular Cities framework.

Similarly, technology could be a game changer. AI-based tracking, GIS mapping of dumping hotspots, and digital platforms connecting waste generators to recyclers would bring transparency and efficiency, supported by innovations from start-ups like TrashCon and Recity. GPS-enabled trucks, QR-coded consignments, and a public Urban Mining Platform for scheduling pickups and selling recycled products could make compliance easier.

Moreover, embedding “design for disassembly” for easier dismantling, training informal workers in safe handling, and integrating them into formal operations would create safer livelihoods. Public campaigns to shift builder attitudes are equally critical to breaking the culture of illegal dumping. With decisive action, Bengaluru could transform 60–80% of its debris into a resource stream, turning today’s waste burden into a model of urban circularity.

Now, the question is no longer whether Bengaluru can solve its rubble crisis – it is “whether it chooses to?”

(Talat is a PhD scholar, and Rosewine is an associate professor at Christ Deemed to be University)