NITI Aayog Study: Scenarios Towards Viksit Bharat and Net Zero (Waste Sector)

Source: NITI Aayog

Subject: Governance

Context: NITI Aayog released a landmark series of 11 reports detailing India’s first government-led integrated study to align the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision with the Net Zero 2070 climate commitment.

• Volume 8 of this series specifically provides a strategic roadmap for transforming the waste sector into a resource recovery powerhouse.

About NITI Aayog Study: Scenarios Towards Viksit Bharat and Net Zero (Waste Sector)

What it is?

• The study entails a scenario-based analytical modelling exercise developed by 10 inter-ministerial working groups over 18 months.

• It evaluates “Current Policy” versus “Net Zero” pathways to ensure economic growth is decoupled from greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

• For the waste sector, the report emphasizes bridging structural gaps through universal collection, 100% door-to-door segregation, and the large-scale adoption of bio-methanation.

Overview of the Waste Sector in India:

• Emission Growth: The waste sector’s GHG emissions grew by 226% between 1994 and 2020 due to rapid urbanization and industrial activities.

• Current Contribution: In 2020, the waste sector contributed approximately 76 MtCO2e, making it the fourth-largest contributor to India’s overall emissions.

• Daily Generation: India currently produces around 170,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste (MSW) every day, totaling roughly 62 million tonnes annually.

• Recycling Inefficiency: While India generates nearly 6.2 MMT of e-waste annually, only 18% of the extractable value is currently recovered due to informal sector inefficiencies.

• Economic Opportunity: Processing just 50% of wet waste through bio-methanation could contribute ₹2,460 crore annually to the economy.

Current Trajectory of Waste:

• Massive Generation Surge: Annual waste generation is projected to jump from 62 million tonnes currently to 165 million tonnes by 2030 and 436 million tonnes by 2050.

E.g. Metros like Delhi struggle with rising waste, where legacy dumpsites like Ghazipur continue to expand despite remediation efforts.

• High Organic Methane Potential: Indian MSW contains 40-60% organic material, which leads to massive methane leaks in unscientific landfills.

E.g. Poorly managed landfills in Mumbai and Chennai often experience spontaneous fires due to trapped methane gas from decomposing organic matter.

• Rising E-Waste and Battery Volumes: E-waste is expected to rise to 14 MMT by 2030, while Lithium-ion battery spent volumes are projected to rise ninefold.

E.g. The rapid adoption of Electric Vehicles (EVs) in states like Karnataka and Maharashtra is creating a surge in battery waste that current facilities cannot handle.

• Increasing Construction and Demolition (C&D) Waste: India generates 10–12 million tonnes of C&D waste annually, much of which is dumped illegally.

E.g. Rapid infrastructure expansion in Bengaluru has led to C&D waste being dumped in lake beds, causing urban flooding during monsoons.

• Steady Growth in Industrial Effluents: Industrial wastewater emissions are rising sharply as manufacturing expands under Make in India.

E.g. Industrial clusters in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu face increasing pressure to adopt zero-liquid discharge systems to prevent groundwater contamination.

Challenges in the Waste Sector:

• Limited Processing Capacity: India currently loses thousands of crores because formal recycling systems cannot absorb the pace of waste generation.

E.g. Only 10% of e-waste is processed through authorized channels, with the rest handled by unregulated informal workers in places like Moradabad.

• Inefficient Source Segregation: A lack of door-to-door segregation ruins the quality of recyclables and increases processing costs.

E.g. In many tier-2 cities, dry and wet waste are still mixed in a single bin, making bio-methanation plants technically unfeasible.

• Lack of Quality Standards: There are no national standards for many recycled products, leading to a loss of revenue.

E.g. The waste tyre sector loses roughly ₹7,500 crore in revenue annually because recycled rubber lacks the certification needed for high-value industrial use.

• Urban-Rural Disparity: While urban areas face a scale problem, rural regions struggle with a total absence of organized collection systems.

E.g. Villages in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar often resort to open burning of plastic waste due to a lack of municipal pick-up services.

• Workforce and Skill Gaps: The transition to a circular economy is hindered by a lack of skilled workers and a fragmented informal sector.

E.g. Informal scrap dealers in Jaipur lack the technology and safety training required to safely extract rare earth metals from modern electronics.

NITI Aayog Recommendations:

• Universal Collection: Achieve 100% door-to-door solid waste collection and treatment of all collected wastewater by 2047.

• Waste-to-Resource: Transition from simple disposal to high-value recovery, transforming waste into Bio-CNG, compost, and treated wastewater.

• Policy Upheaval: Ban the pyrolysis of imported end-of-life tyres to encourage high-value domestic recycling and prevent environmental damage.

• Circular Economy Integration: Formalize the informal sector and strengthen the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework for batteries and e-waste.

• Behavioral Change: Leverage Mission LiFE to drive citizen participation in source segregation as a national movement (Jan Andolan).

Conclusion:

NITI Aayog’s 2026 reports clarify that reaching Net Zero by 2070 is a strategic economic necessity rather than just an environmental goal. By viewing waste as embodied energy and bridging structural gaps through technology and circularity, India can secure its material supply chains and boost its GDP. Achieving these targets will require a massive shift in urban governance and active participation from every Indian household.

Q. “The mismanagement of waste and sewage in urban and peri-urban areas poses serious challenges to public health and environmental sustainability”. Analyze the socio-economic implications of poor waste management and suggest effective remedial measures. (15 M)