On Sunday (22 January), the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Ltd (BSWML) released short-term tenders for the collection and transportation (C&T) of waste from all 243 wards and 42 lakh households and commercial buildings.

This is BSWML's second attempt, after the majority of bidders failed to meet the mandated parameters in the earlier tender it floated in November 2022.

BSWML is a government-owned company formed to execute solid waste management (SWM) projects on behalf of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).

Established in 2021, BSWML is responsible for the collection, transportation and processing of waste from households and commercial establishments. The entity will also be handling the waste processing plants and waste-to-energy (WTE) proposals that are just taking off.

While 51 per cent of the company’s stake is with the BBMP, the state government owns the remaining 49 per cent. BSWML was formed as a separate entity with administrative and financial independence, after it was determined by the state government that BBMP did an inadequate job of waste management.

89 Packages To Cover 243 City Wards

The BSWML has divided the task into 89 packages. Each bundle includes two to three wards. The yearly cost of the five-year contract is projected to be Rs 590 crore. This amounts to almost Rs 20 lakh per month for each ward.

“We had to recall the previous tender as a majority of the 89 packages received single bids. We expect a higher number of bidders in the new tender,” Deccan Herald quoted Dr Harish Kumar, head of BSWML, as saying.

The updated tender will remain open until 8 February 2023. Before the state assembly elections in March, BSWML officials intend to finish the tender procedures.

For the first time, a waste tender process is proposed to be completed for all 243 wards of the city in one go. Previously, the collection tender would be finalised for half of the wards, while contractor mafia would ensure tender for the rest of the wards would see no participation, in a bid to retain their monopoly.

According to Ramprasad V, a solid waste management expert, the successful tendering process means lobbies have been overcome. This tender will increase participation and help to streamline garbage collection and separation.

Every day, the city produces between 5,500 and 6,000 tonnes of garbage. Households contribute about 4,000-4,500 tonnes of garbage, and bulk waste generators contribute another 1,500-200 tonnes. There are seven waste processing facilities, but none of them are running.

Previously, the dry waste collection was outsourced to non-governmental organisations on a trial basis. There was no accountability because different trash streams were collected by different entities. All municipal trash streams will now be collected by a single organisation.

Once fully functional, the government proposes to allow BSWML to collect monthly charges for providing the service of collecting waste from households and commercial establishments.

“Once the new system is in place, we will be taking the help of residents’ welfare associations and non-profit organisations to create awareness about waste segregation,” Harish Kumar added.