Events with 100+ at unlicensed venues must segregate waste

BMC's new SWM Rules 2024 require event organizers to segregate waste, notify authorities, and ensure proper disposal by partnering with local bodies.

Mumbai: The central government’s gazetted notification on Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules for 2024 was made public by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Monday.

events with 100+ at unlicensed venues must segregate waste

A key rule requires event organisers at unlicensed venues with over a 100 people to segregate waste at source. They must also hand it over to designated waste collectors or agencies and dispose it off according to prescribed rules. These organisers must inform the local authority (i.e. BMC) at least three working days in advance to get a license for the event from the local body.

The rules listed four categories of waste segregation - wet, dry, sanitary, and special care waste. It stipulated that all individuals and organisations dispose waste in an environmentally responsible manner.

The notification mandates institutions occupying more than 5000sqmts such as hotels, restaurants, resident welfare associations, market associations, and gated communities to partner with local bodies within a year to segregate waste at the source. They must process biodegradable waste on-site whenever possible and hand over recyclable materials to authorized waste pickers. Sanitary waste must be securely wrapped in pouches and disposed separately.

Proper disposal of construction waste, demolition waste, horticulture waste was stressed in the notification. Horticulture and garden waste should be stored separately in their premises and disposed according to local authority’s guidelines. They must not be burnt, buried, thrown on streets, in drains or other water bodies.

It also proposes a user fee for solid waste management as specified in the local body byelaws.