The recently notified Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules 2026 are expected to require at least one year for complete implementation, as urban local bodies need time to draft and notify their respective bylaws. Officials highlighted a similar delay following the notification of the SWM Rules 2016, when civic agencies took nearly two years to finalize bylaws specifying implementation procedures, user obligations, and penalties for violations before receiving notification from the Delhi government.
Meeting on Implementation Preparedness
A meeting was convened by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change with urban local bodies on Wednesday to review preparedness and timelines for implementing the rules, in compliance with directions issued by the Supreme Court. An official from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) stated that the 2026 bylaws will be framed considering the geographical and local conditions of respective areas. Urban local bodies have been directed to strictly adhere to the 54-point agenda specified under the rules in a time-bound manner.
MCD's Measures and Waste Projections
In its submission, MCD informed that several measures have been implemented or are in the process of being enforced. For example, projections of waste generation in Delhi—estimated at 15,292 metric tonnes by 2028—have already been prepared. Work is also underway on ward-wise collection plans, including special-care waste, transportation plans, and mapping of solid waste management infrastructure.
MCD has engaged IIT-Delhi to assess the nature and quality of waste generated across the city, including in affluent colonies and unauthorized settlements, and to study changes in waste generation patterns over time. Officials explained that the institute will undertake GIS-based inventorization and mapping of waste generation, collect data on bulk waste generators through surveys and secondary sources, assess infrastructure gaps, identify vulnerable garbage points, and recommend suitable waste collection and processing systems. Additionally, IIT will design frameworks for third-party audits of bulk waste generators and decentralized processing facilities.
Compliance with Supreme Court Directions
On May 11, MCD asked all deputy commissioners to use authorized vehicles for waste transportation, identify high-footfall garbage-prone areas for deployment of Swachhta marshals, implement twice-a-day sweeping, and deploy additional manpower. The order, issued in compliance with the Supreme Court directions on May 5, stressed the establishment of reduce, reuse, and recycle centers in neighborhoods, in addition to a survey of closed dhalaos. The compliance report is to be submitted by May 20.
Provisions Under New SWM Rules
Among other provisions under the new SWM Rules, district magistrates or deputy commissioners have been tasked with facilitating identification and allocation of land for solid waste processing and disposal facilities. During Wednesday's meeting, urban local bodies were asked to complete geo-tagging of all bulk waste generators, mapping of material recovery facilities by October 31, and uploading of bio-mining data on the central portal. However, there is no clarity on enforcement of user charges on waste generators, despite earlier SWM Rules also making it mandatory. Officials added that source segregation is important to achieve results.
Meanwhile, although the rules mandate the Central Pollution Control Board to establish and operate an online system for filing details of bulk waste generators, the platform is yet to become operational. One official noted that while MCD has uploaded details of the generators on the '311' app, they are waiting for the centralized system to become functional.
