Why this sudden solid haste management?

Just two years ago, I pointed out a number of flaws in the BBMP's solid waste management contracts, and asked whether they could be fixed by revising the agreements with the contractors. The answer I got was, "These contracts are for 20+ years, we can't do anything until the end of the contract period."
Well, think again. Now, thanks to a court order, a closed landfill, and activism from communities around the city, the 20-year contract is not worth the paper it is written on.But rather than learn a few lessons from this, BBMP is trying to recycle its old cozy arrangements between its staff and contractors.
There are several things wrong with the way BBMP and the state government are responding to recent developments. Unless these are fixed now, it will be another round of 'haste makes waste' for the city.
It's extremely revealing that the Council's first response is to try to tender new contracts for SWM. What's the rush? Can we not wait to collect data about the problem, and develop a proper response to it? Can we not ask citizens to give their inputs ? Why not check how prepared industry and communities are? Why is BBMP so keen to put the 'money and deals' part of the package first?
The answer is obvious, especially when we notice the secrecy accompanying the rush. There's money in the trash, and in our politics, money moves a lot of things. The quantum of money at stake is roughly Rs 600-800 crores a year. We can surely wait and figure out what is the right thing to do, which involves two important principles --( a) do things locally and with community support, and (b) ensure that producers are also brought into the lifecycle management.
If we have the opportunity to do the right thing today, it is partly because local communities began segregating and recycling waste without waiting for the BBMP. They are the pioneers of social change. BBMP's new contract must be restructured to give communities more direct control over the contractors. The tender currently reads like an agreement between BBMP and the service providers only, with communities cut out from the picture. Also, it must be written explicitly into the contracts that the waste 'belongs' to communities and the city, but not to contractors.
So far, BBMP has barely scratched the surface of engaging with citizens and their programmes. For any SWM scheme to work, we must ensure the market for recyclables is prepared to accept a surge in inflow, and that proper procedures for handling recycled materials are in place.
Given this, what the city council and state government can do today is accept that the old game is up, and try to win points on performance and accountability . Otherwise, officials will tell us once again, after this flawed tender is approved, that “nothing can be done for the next 20+ years”.
Ashwin Mahesh is a member of ABIDe, and researcher at the Centre for Public Policy at IIM-Bangalore