India 2018

208 India 2018
housing societies have been made responsible to develop in-house waste
handling, and processing arrangements for bio-degradable waste.
Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016
It is known fact that plastic has multiple uses and the physical and chemical
properties lead to their commercial success but inevitably their indiscriminate
disposal has become a major threat to the environment. In particular, the plastic
carry bags are the biggest contributors of the littered waste and every year,
millions of plastic bags end up in the environment vis-a-vis soil, water bodies,
water courses, and it takes an average of one thousand years to decompose
completely. Therefore, to address the issue of scientific plastic waste
management, new regulations namely, the Plastic Waste (Management and
Handling) Rules, 2011 were notified in 2011 which included plastic waste
management. However, the implementation of these rules was not so effective
because their ambit was limited to notified municipal areas whereas today, the
plastic has reached our rural areas also. To address these issues and with an
objective to set up self-sustainable waste management system, the Ministry
notified the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016. The Rules provide for: (i)
increase in minimum thickness of plastic carry bags from 40 to 50 microns, (ii)
first time cover and stipulate minimum thickness of 50 microns for plastic sheets
being used for packaging and wrapping commodities to facilitate collection
and recycle of plastic waste, (iii) revamped pricing mechanisms for plastic carry
bags by introducing plastic waste management fee to be paid by retailers/street
vendors willing to provide carry bags as pre-registration charge, (iv) ways and
means to promote gainful utilization of plastic waste such as energy recovery,
in road construction, etc. (v) introducing user charge and spot fines by local
authority.
Construction & Demolition Waste Management, 2016
The Ministry for the first time notified the separate set of rules for management
of construction and demolition waste in the country as Construction and
Demolition Management Rules, 2016. Prior to these Rules, this was regulated
under the Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules, 2000 and was left at the
desecration of the urban local bodies. The new rules regulate waste generated
from construction, re-modeling, repair and demolition of any civil structure
and make a way forward to reuse, recycle such waste in gainful manner. The
new rules will apply to everyone who generates construction and demolition
waste-building materials, debris, and rubble waste from construction, remodeling,
repair and demolition of any civil structure of individual or
organisation or authority. Under the rules every waste generator has been made
responsible for collection, segregation of concrete, soil and others and storage
of construction and demolition waste generated separately, deposit at collection
centre so made by the local body or handover it to the authorised processing
facilities, ensure that there is no littering or deposition so as to prevent obstruction