Amid the Diwali festivities, Mumbai witnessed a sharp spike in waste generation — producing over 3,000 metric tonnes (MT) of additional garbage over the past week, equivalent to nearly 162 truckloads.

According to data from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the city, which typically generates an average of 6,900 MT of solid waste per day (as per September figures), saw this number rise to around 7,300 MT daily during the festive week — marking an increase of roughly 400 MT per day.

Between October 19 and 21, daily waste generation peaked at 7,799 MT, with an average of 7,300 MT per day over the last five days. Accounting for backlog clearance, officials estimated an additional 600–700 MT of waste generated daily, amounting to a total of 3,000 MT of excess garbage.

Of this, the BMC has already disposed of 2,075 MT at the Kanjurmarg and Deonar landfills, while the remaining 1,000 MT is being processed across various refuse transfer stations for immediate clearance.

To manage the surge, the BMC intensified its operations — deploying sanitation workers in double shifts, mobilizing all garbage collection vehicles and compactors, and engaging over 2,000 additional personnel as part of a special pre- and post-Diwali cleanliness drive conducted from October 13 to 24. In total, 7,145 labourers were deployed, supported by 5,000 members of the Pink Army and 800 night-shift staffers to ensure round-the-clock sanitation.

“BMC teams worked tirelessly to handle the additional load of nearly 3,000 tonnes of garbage generated in just a few days during the festival season. The timely clearance reflects our readiness and the commitment of our sanitation staff,” said Kiran Dighavkar, Deputy Municipal Commissioner (Solid Waste Management).

The civic body has urged citizens to continue maintaining cleanliness during ongoing festive celebrations and to responsibly dispose of waste to support the city’s sanitation efforts.

News source: The Indian Express