The 15-member committee formed to look into garbage tenders may have crossed the first hurdle with the general consensus on limiting the collection to just wet and sanitary waste, while dry waste would be handed over to ragpickers and non-governmental organisation. However, garbage contractors are terming the tender conditions as impractical.
According to S.N. Balasubramaniam, garbage contractor and general secretary of the Bengaluru Mahanagara Swachchate Lorry Malikara mathu Guttigedarara Sangha, many contractors are wary of participating in the tenders that were floated on January 18. It requires all vehicles to be fitted with RFID and GPS trackers.
“We are not objecting to this. However, the tender states that the auto tipper driver is supposed to plot the house giving mixed waste on the GIS map and send it to the control room. This is asking too much of drivers,” said Mr. Balasubramaniam.
Pre-bid meeting
Contractors also raised concerns over the route deviation penalty. All vehicles will be given a specified route map; a penalty will be levied if they deviate from the route. “What happens when, under some emergency, the driver has to go to get the vehicle repaired?”
Contractors will be raising these concerns at the pre-bid meeting, which is likely to be held on February 19.
BBMP Commissioner N. Manjunath Prasad said the concerns are unfounded.
“We are proposing to put in place a robust system to ensure that not a single house or road is left out. It is because of gaps in the existing collection system that black spots are being created,” he said.
The BBMP had already floated a tender to set up a strong, technical control room to monitor the entire collection and transportation of waste. It restricted the collection to only wet waste and sanitary waste, as is mandated under the SWM Rules 2016. This will help avoid aggregation of segregated waste, besides improving levels of segregation across the city, said Mr. Prasad.
The BBMP has taken a time and motion study in 10 wards to ascertain if one auto tipper can be deployed per block comprising 750 houses. The findings of the study will be placed before the 15-member committee on Monday.
Will citizens comply?
Sandya Narayanan, member of Solid Waste Management Round Table, said the main issue now is compliance by citizens. “Under the new tender, the BBMP will be able to put in place a robust, efficient and transparent system. Such steps were taken in Indore in Madhya Pradesh as well. What has worked there should work for Bengaluru as well,” she said.
