How civic agency-contractor tussle cripples Bengaluru’s waste collection

Amid mounting garbage woes in the city, the ineffective collection and management system appears to be fuelled by a tussle between the civic agency and garbage collection contractors.

“One of the primary reasons for the garbage issue is the delay in finalising and issuing garbage collection tenders for nearly a decade,” said Clement Jayakumar, a member of the Mahadevapura Task Force, a civic group.

While contractors consistently point to irregularities in the tenders and corruption, the civic agency points to a deeper “mafia” and collusion among existing contractors in creating problems with the tendering process.

As a result, multiple issues such as a shortage of tippers and staff, irregular availability of personnel, delays in salary payments, and vehicle breakdowns have emerged, leading to the collapse of the city’s garbage collection system.

Payment puzzle

The primary issue is payment. Typically, civic bodies in the city make monthly payments to BSWML, which in turn pays contractors once they raise their bills. A contractor managing waste collection in east Bengaluru said that BSWML makes delayed payments and has left them unpaid for months. “For a few months, we can manage paying the workers, but if the issue persists, where do we bring the money from to keep paying the staff?” the contractor questioned.

However, Karee Gowda, Chief Executive Officer of BSWML, told The Hindu that the payments being held back relate to contractors who have not raised their bills. To support his claim, Mr. Gowda showed notices sent to contractors urging them to submit their bills so that payments can be completed.

According to Mr. Gowda, contractors must make Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) and Provident Fund (PF) payments for waste collection staff; otherwise, BSWML cannot release payments to them.

“Several contractors do not pay their staff properly or on time in order to increase their profits, which means their bills cannot be accepted by BSWML. They then claim that the company has not paid them,” said Mr. Gowda. However, contractors allege “corruption” in the system, while the civic agency maintains that these are merely accusations.

This feud between the administration and contractors has affected the financial condition of ground-level workers, who face difficulties making ends meet, resulting in irregular attendance and, more importantly, a search for ways to make quick money.

Ground concerns

Meanwhile, garbage from commercial establishments is collected separately. In some cases, however, auto tippers assigned to collect waste from residential areas collect waste from small commercial establishments in exchange for money. Subsequently, the tippers transfer the waste to large compactors and mark their routes as completed, resulting in waste collection being skipped in certain stretches or localities for the day.

There is currently no effective mechanism in place to prevent such practices.

Several drivers and waste collection workers have become highly irregular in their attendance due to payment-related issues. According to official data, staff attendance has fluctuated between 60% and 90%, leading to irregular waste collection in some parts of the city. There have been several complaints of waste remaining uncollected for days, and in some cases even a week, in areas under the East and South City Corporations.

Amid the shortage of tippers, staff shortages, and irregular waste collection, hundreds of tonnes of waste end up on the streets, creating black spots as residents who miss the tippers’ collection timings resort to dumping garbage in public spaces.

(This is the third story in the series on the deepening garbage crisis in the city.)