India processed 53 per cent of solid waste generated: RTI

The country generated nearly 1.45 lakh metric tonnes waste per day till February this year and of this, only 53 percent of waste was processed. Chhattisgarh stood first in processing 84 per cent waste followed by Gujarat.

New Delhi: As much as 53 per cent of the solid waste generated in the country was processed till February this year, with Chhattisgarh topping the list by processing 84 per cent waste followed by Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana, an RTI reply has found.

In reply to an RTI application, the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry said Mizoram and West Bengal processed only 4 per cent and 5 per cent of the solid waste they generated. Mizoram and West Bengal produced 201 metric tonnes and 7,700 metric tones of waste per day respectively.

Jammu and Kashmir produced 1415 metric tonnes waste but processed only 8 per cent. According to the ministry, the country generated nearly 1.45 lakh metric tonnes waste per day till February this year and of this, only 53 per cent of waste was processed Under the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), a flagship programme of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Centre aims to attain 100 per cent scientific management of solid waste, and also make the country Open-Defecation Free (ODF) by October 2, 2019, the 150th anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi.

Chandigarh came first in Union Territory category by processing 89 per cent of the 420 MT waste generated a day. Chhattisgarh generated 1650 MT waste a day and of this, 84 per cent was processed while both Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh stood at second by processing 74 per cent of 10,721 MTD and 6,424 MTD of waste respectively. Telangana could manage to process 73 per cent of 8,634 metric tonnes waste it produced.

Maharashtra, which tops the list of municipal solid waste generators, produced 22,570 MT waste per day, but processed 57 per cent. The government said Uttar Pradesh and Bihar were processing 57 per cent and 51 per cent of 15,500 and 2,272 metric tonnes of waste respectively.

After Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh is the second state in generating municipal waste in the country. Tamil Nadu processed 58 per cent of water it had generated. Uttrakhand processed only 39 per cent of 1406 metric tonnes while Odisha processed 12 per cent of 2,721 MT waste.

Tripura generated 308 metric tonnes of waste, but processed 45 per cent. Goa processed 65 per cent of 260 MT waste a day. Haryana processed only 39 per cent while Jharkhand stood at 56 per cent.