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India’s urban areas generate over 1.5 lakh tonnes of municipal solid waste every single day, yet the critical question remains: how much of it is truly segregated, processed and kept out of landfills?
At the Clean India 2025 show, a multi-sector panel examined this fundamental gap through the lens of segregation, community participation and sustainable public health solutions. The discussion underscored that zero-landfill goals cannot be achieved through infrastructure alone, but require behavioural change at the household level, structured segregation systems, economic incentives for recovery and stronger integration between urban local bodies, health departments and academic institutions.
Speakers called for a coordinated roadmap that links cleanliness targets directly with urban health outcomes and circular economy models.
Framing the discussion on ‘Segregation, Community Engagement and Sustainable Health Solutions: Towards Self Sustaining Clean Cities’, the panel’s moderator Dr Ajit Salvi, Director of Regional Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies (RCUES) of All India Institute of Local Self Government (AIILSG) stated that India no longer needs to look abroad for examples of cleanliness. “We can talk about Surat, Indore, even Navi Mumbai,” he said, adding that smaller towns in Maharashtra have also demonstrated workable models.
India no longer needs to look abroad for models of urban cleanliness. Cities like Indore, Surat and Navi Mumbai demonstrate that consistent segregation, strong municipal systems and community participation can deliver real results.
Dr Ajit Salvi
Urban Local Bodies and the Zero-Landfill Goal
Highlighting the role of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) under the Swachh Bharat Mission, Ramdas Kokare, Deputy Municipal Commissioner, Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation stated that the bodies must ensure adequate manpower and sufficient vehicles for door-to-door collection. “Only when there is sufficient quantity of vehicles, door-to-door collection will be possible. Also, segregation must happen during collection itself. Once waste is segregated into maximum possible categories, processing becomes easier and landfill burden reduces. If we segregate at maximum level, there will be no waste at our dumps. We can achieve zero landfill status,” the official said.
However, Ramdas acknowledged resistance at the citizen level. “Many residents believe waste management is the municipality’s responsibility because they pay taxes. People say we pay tax, so this is the BMC’s job,” he noted, emphasising that without citizen participation, source segregation cannot be sustained.
Zero-landfill cities are achievable only when segregation begins at the point of collection. With adequate vehicles, manpower and category-wise sorting, processing becomes easier and the pressure on dumpsites reduces dramatically.
Ramdas Kokare
Urbanisation and Health: The Environmental Link
India’s urban population has grown from 27.7% in 2001 to over 31% in 2011, and is projected to exceed 40% by 2030, according to Census and government projections. This rapid urban expansion has intensified pressure on housing, sanitation systems and waste infrastructure, particularly in densely populated informal settlements where basic amenities often lag behind population growth. In cities like Mumbai, studies have shown that a single community toilet seat may serve 80–85 people — far above recommended norms — underscoring the stress on urban sanitation systems.
Public health research consistently links such environmental conditions with higher risks of water-borne and vector-borne diseases. In rapidly urbanising areas where waste is not properly segregated or collected, exposure pathways multiply — through contaminated water, rodent infestation and mosquito breeding. It was against this urban health backdrop that Dr. Mangala Gomare, Former Executive Health Officer at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), drew a direct connection between solid waste management, sanitation systems and disease prevention.
According to her, rapid urbanisation leads to unplanned settlements where basic amenities such as toilets, drinking water, solid waste collection and roads are often inadequate. “Health and solid waste management go together,” she asserted, explaining the epidemiological triad of agent, host and environment. “Improperly handled organic waste attracts flies, rodents and mosquitoes, contributing to vector-borne diseases. Poor environmental sanitation can also increase water-borne illnesses such as diarrhoea and typhoid,” the expert said.
Rapid urbanisation without adequate sanitation infrastructure directly impacts public health. Poor waste handling creates breeding grounds for disease vectors, highlighting the inseparable link between environmental hygiene and preventive healthcare.
Dr Mangala Gomare
She further stressed that environment plays a decisive role in disease transmission. “If wet waste is not segregated and rots in open spaces, it creates breeding grounds for pathogens. Biomedical and sanitary waste, if not properly segregated, pose additional hazards. Effective coordination between engineering departments, social sectors and health services is essential to prevent disease outbreaks,” added Dr Gomare.
