Other municipal bodies across India could take a cue from the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) and Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited (BSWML), which have rolled out an inventive approach to curb street littering. Under a new scheme, residents can now earn a Rs 250 reward for filming and sharing clips of people dumping garbage in public places.
Citizens can send these videos of “litter-bugs” through a dedicated WhatsApp number or official social media handles. Once verified, BSWML will issue the cash reward, according to officials.
Not just this, the campaign—reportedly titled “Kasa Surisuva Habba” or the “Garbage Dumping Festival”—takes a novel route to deal with chronic waste disposal issues in the city. Rather than relying solely on fines or warnings, civic workers identify offenders, collect the trash they have dumped, and deliver it right back to their doorsteps. These offenders can also face penalties of up to Rs10,000.
To catch violators, civic marshals use CCTV footage and even sift through discarded waste for clues such as bills or address tags. The campaign initially targeted about 200 homes and is set to expand across the city. In some cases, residents are required to personally take back the trash from civic workers—an exercise designed to instil a sense of accountability and civic pride.
While the initiative is said to have earned praise for this tough, innovative approach, some have voiced concerns over fairness, noting that irregular garbage collection sometimes leaves them with no choice but to dump waste outside. Officials, however, insist that softer awareness campaigns have failed in the past, and that this direct, results-driven strategy may finally bring about a lasting change in public behaviour.
