Tejas Navale

Pune: The problems of waste management and disposal of solid waste are increasing day by day. Increasing urbanisation and industrialization in the city are only exacerbating the problem of waste management in the city. In the wake of this problem, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has decided to increase the amount of the fine ten times. Therefore, those who break the waste regulations will now face significant penalties.

According to the PMC's latest decision, the PMC will charge a fine of Rs 5,000 for burning waste in the open. Similarly, the government will also levy hefty fines for non-compliance with waste regulations.

According to the Solid Waste Management Rules 2016, municipalities took penal action for non-segregation of waste, non-disposal of waste through societies, and open burning of waste.

Deputy Commissioner of PMC's Solid Waste Management, Sandeep Kadam, said that health inspectors of the solid waste management department will conduct inspections within their respective limits, and they will also take punitive action against those who violate the rules.

The municipal corporation gets a large amount of revenue from this fine amount. However, these incidents do not stop despite repeated actions. It further impacts Pune's ranking in the Swachh Bharat Sarvekshan. Therefore, the municipality has decided to increase the amount of the fine.

Earlier, PMC was collecting a fine of Rs 60 on the first occasion, Rs 120 on the second occasion, and Rs 180 on the third and on each subsequent occasion if the garbage was not segregated into wet and dry waste and was not stored in separate bins. Now, a fine of Rs 300 will be imposed on the first occasion and Rs 500 on every subsequent occasion. Similarly, instead of Rs 500 each time, a fine of Rs 5,000 will be charged directly for burning garbage.

If bulk waste generators do not dispose of wet waste, there is a provision for a fine of Rs 5,000 for the first time, Rs 10,000 for the second time, and Rs 15 thousand for the third and subsequent occasions. Now, as per the revised rules, a fine of Rs 5,000 will be imposed on the first occasion and Rs 15,000 on every subsequent occasion.

Sandeep Kadam said, "We have been instructed to take effective action with a revised penalty amount against violators and to submit the report regarding it regularly.