Waste Management: Gujarat, located on India’s westernmost tip, is one of the country’s most well-known states. The culture and heritage of the fifth-largest state by area are well-known.
Gujarat, as one of the country’s most developed states, faces challenges in the area of legacy waste management. Every day, the state generates approximately 1.48 lakh tonnes of waste, which is collected by 79,000 urban municipal councils.
In the midst of the pandemic, waste management is a huge challenge for the country. Every day, about 1.5 lakh metric tonnes of municipal solid waste are generated in India’s cities. The key focus area under the Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban 2.0 goals is proper waste segregation at the source and eliminating the dreadful construction of landfills across cities. The national mission, which was launched on October 1, 2021 by Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi, aims to revitalise urban landscapes and further the vision of New India.
Waste Management program
The ‘Lakshya Zero’ Dumpsite, which will remediate around 16 crore metric tonnes (MT) of legacy waste dumpsites occupying over 14,000 acres of city land, is one of the mission’s most important components. Not only does legacy waste disrupt the ecological balance of its surroundings, but it also degrades and muddles the overall aesthetics of urban landscapes. A project worth 403.77 crores has been proposed under the Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban 2.0 for the remediation of legacy wastes from landfills in Gujarat.
The MoHUA has approved a central share of 144.85 crores for legacy waste remediation to help Gujarat’s prime land be free of hazardous landfills. A total of 148 urban local governments (ULBs) across the state have requested approval to reclaim over 806 acres of prime land that has been contaminated by 19 lakh metric tonnes of waste. ULB-Rajkot plans to remediate around 6 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste.
While ULBs like Surendranagar-Wadhvan and Porbandar-Chhaya are attempting to reclaim vast swaths of land by combining their efforts to remediate over 9 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste. The two ULBs of Bhavnagar and Rajkot will receive funding to establish a C & D waste processing plant, which will contribute to the enhancement of the cities’ aesthetics.
The issue of legacy waste management is unavoidable; in light of this, the Union government has approved the proposals of approximately 600 cities for legacy waste remediation in states such as Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Rajasthan, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, and Delhi. The waste management sector’s efforts are visible, and significant milestones have been achieved under the Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban 2.0, which prioritises safety and sanitation for the benefit of citizens.