International Journal of Interdisciplinary and Multidisciplinary Studies (IJIMS), 2016, Vol 4, No.1,13-19. 13 Available online at http://www.ijims.com ISSN - (Print): 2519 – 7908 ; ISSN - (Electronic): 2348 – 0343 IF:4.335; IC Value: 60.59 An overview of legal framework for waste management system in india with special allusion to SWM rules, 2016 Mithun Ray 1* and Mijanur Rahman 2 1.Department of Geography,North-Eastern Hill University, Meghalaya, India 2.Department Of Geography,Barrackpore Rastraguru Surendranath College,West Bengal Corresponding Author: Mithun Ray Abstract In early times, the disposal of human and other wastes did not pose a significant problem because the population was small and the amount of land available for assimilation of wastes was large. But the increasing and diversified wastes resulted from the rapid economic growth and overpopulation have made management of solid wastes one of the major concerns of many Municipal Authorities and Urban Local Bodies for the responsibility of supervising public health and sanitation as unhealthy disposal of solid waste is responsible for severe health, environmental and aesthetic problems. The present paper reviews the legal frameworks and profiles available for waste management in India. This paper specially brings to light the reasons and likely implications of solid waste management rules, 2016 and highlights the shortcomings of the rule. Keywords: Legal framework, waste management, India, SWM-2016 Introduction In early times, the disposal of human and other wastes did not pose a significant problem because the population was small and the amount of land available for assimilation of wastes was large 1 . But the increasing and diversified wastes resulted from the rapid economic growth and overpopulation have made management of solid wastes one of the major concerns of many Municipal Authorities and Urban Local Bodies for the responsibility of supervising public health and sanitation 2,3 ; as unhealthy disposal of solid waste is responsible for severe health, environmental and aesthetic problems 4 . Inadequate infrastructure and financing, lack of definite responsibilities and roles of the authorities, insufficient rules, legal framework and poor enforcement have made the problem alarming, more complex and challenging in developing countries 5,6 . In India, unplanned rapid urban growth and extension of slums due to a desirable rapid industrialization and an undesirable population explosion have produced growing public concern with exponential increase in sanitation and environmental concerns 7, 8 . Waste management system and institutional structure in India The management system of solid wastes in India covers the full cycle from waste generation, collection, resource recovery and recycling, transportation to processing or disposal of waste 9,10 . At present, 62 million tones of waste is generated annually in the country, out of which 5.6 million tones is plastic waste, 0.17 million tones is biomedical waste 7.90 million tones per annum and 15 lakh tones is e-waste. Only about 75-80 percents of the municipal wastes get collected and only 22-28 percents of this waste is processed and treated 18 . The generation of solid waste is projected to increase significantly as the country strives to attain the status of an industrialized nation by the year 2020 11, 16 . The waste generation rates in India are lower than the low-income countries in other parts of the world and much lower compared to developed countries 25 . However, lifestyle changes, especially in the larger cities, are leading to the use of more packaging material and per capita waste generation is increasing by about 1.3 per cent per year 17 . Physical and chemical characteristics of solid waste in Indian cities vary depending on population size and geographical location. Though composition of urban waste is changing with increasing use of packaging material and plastics, yet, as compared to developed countries, Indian solid waste