National Drive Launched to Clear Massive Landfills
With a critical deadline looming, the Indian government has initiated a major push to completely clear 214 legacy landfills across the country by September 2026. Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal officially launched the Dumpsite Remediation Accelerator Programme on Saturday in New Delhi, targeting the monumental task of addressing 8.8 crore metric tonnes of accumulated garbage spread across 202 cities.
Accelerating the Clean-Up Mission
The announcement comes with less than one year remaining in the five-year Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0, which was originally launched in 2021 with the objective of clearing all legacy landfills in Indian cities. According to official data from the SBM-U website, as of the launch date, 49% of the area occupied by legacy landfills remains unreclaimed, while 41% of the waste still requires remediation.
The newly launched programme will concentrate specifically on the 214 identified sites, which collectively account for approximately 80% of the total waste at the 1,428 legacy landfills still awaiting remediation across the nation.
Comprehensive Strategy and Financial Support
The government has outlined a multi-pronged approach to tackle this environmental challenge. Under the programme, cities will receive additional financial support for remediation and waste processing projects. The Ministry plans to engage corporate entities and public sector undertakings to support these initiatives, while Central and state road agencies will be encouraged to utilize the processed inert waste in road construction projects.
In a significant move, the programme also calls for political and administrative leaders to "adopt" individual dumpsites to ensure focused attention and accountability. To support these efforts, Central financial assistance of ₹2,716 crore has already been approved for the remediation projects.
Simultaneously, Minister Lal announced the creation of the Urban Invest Window, a HUDCO project designed to enable local bodies to raise private capital. This initiative will assist cities in identifying viable projects, mobilizing necessary funds, and implementing development work effectively. HUDCO will repurpose its regional offices to facilitate this new funding mechanism.
Highlighting the necessity of private participation, the Union minister stated, "It is estimated we will need ₹80 lakh crore as our urban areas grow. I don't think that the Centre and state governments will invest that much. We will have to encourage private partnership and investment from the public." This statement underscores the government's recognition that achieving comprehensive urban development goals requires substantial private sector involvement beyond governmental funding capabilities.
