Mobile application in municipal waste tracking: a pilot study of “PAC waste tracker” in Bangalore city, India

According to the 2011 Census, urbanization has increased faster than expected in India and will witness the largest increase in urban population in the next 4 decades followed by China. This poses an unprecedented challenge of meeting the demand for key service, especially waste management. The study focuses on the case of Bangalore, a city facing a unique solid-waste management crisis. Even with considerable advancement in collecting and segregating waste, only 20% of waste remains picked or is picked irregularly. Public Affairs Centre, a not for profit think tank in Bangalore, launched the PAC Waste Tracker app using citizen science and visual mapping to identify the various issues plaguing the waste collection mechanism in the city with inclusivity. The pilot project undertaken in the four wards has highlighted the issues arising at each and every collection point. These issues tracked for a period of 9 months which showed irregular waste collection, non-segregation of waste, inconvenience caused during collection, and non-compliance with transportation of waste through a bottom–up approach. The findings of the study were presented to local councillors, service providers, and municipal bodies ensuring policy implementation of this study and hence closing the loop of solving the issues.