Cities with population from one to five million generate 80 per cent of India's waste, said the report.
India needs to set aside at least 88 square kilometres of land -- the size of New Delhi district -- for landfills by 2050, industry lobby Assocham said today. "Considering that most of the waste in India is dumped without treatment, it would require an estimated 88 square kilometre of precious land to be brought under waste disposal through landfilling by 2050, which is equivalent to the size of area under administration of the New Delhi Municipal Council," a joint report by Assocham and accounting firm PwC said.
"This will eventually render the land unfit for any other use for as long as a half century before it can be stabilised for other uses," the report 'Waste Management in India: Shifting Gears' said.
With 50 per cent of India's population projected to be living in urban areas by 2050, the volume of
waste generation will grow by five per cent every year, it said. Thus, the projected waste quantity is 101 million tonnes a year by 2021, 164 million tonnes a year by 2031, and 436 million tonnes a year by 2050, according to the report.
It said that tier 1 cities with population ranging from one to five million have been estimated to generate 80 per cent of the country's total waste.
The study estimates the current per day per capita waste generation in medium-size cities at 300-400 grams and for large cities between 400 and 600 grams, and this figure would increase in line with
current urbanisation and consumption patterns.
The report said some issues hampering waste management in India are improper planning, complex institutional set-up, constraints in capacity for waste management and limited funds with urban local bodies.
"Though private sector can play a critical and greater role in waste management in India, there are various issues and bottlenecks on different fronts that have made it challenging to successfully implement projects -- policy and regulatory, financing, project conceptualisation and structuring, technology and capacity," Assocham said in a statement in New Delhi.
The report recommended that the government give industry status to the waste management sector "to provide it necessary boost" and ensure regulatory adherence.