If you feel like littering or spitting in Mysore or any other tier II city in Karnataka, hang on till you reach Bangalore. The fine in tier II cities is set to be Rs 500, against a mere Rs 100 in Bangalore.

To ensure cleanliness in Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in the state, the Department of Municipal Administration (DMA) has proposed stringent penalty clauses. “We have prepared draft rules and sent them to the state government for approval. In the draft bylaw, we have covered all aspects of waste management and keeping cities clean. Our penalty clause is very stringent,” a senior officer in the DMA told ‘Express’.

The DMA covers all cities other than Bangalore. It has proposed a Rs 500 fine for a first-time littering/spitting offence  and double of it for subsequent offences. For not segregating biomedical waste, the fine is Rs 1,000 for first-timers.

The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), however, is less stringent in its fines.  Besides a mere Rs100 for littering, spitting or urinating, non-segregation of biomedical waste in Bangalore will have a fine of Rs 500, half of the penalty in other ULBs. These are also pending the state government’s approval.

Urban local bodies across the state have learnt lessons from the BBMP’s mismanagement of garbage. Of the 213 ULBs  (excluding BBMP) in the state, 106 are taking initiatives to enforce waste segregation at source. Solid waste management systems at these ULBs are in different stages. Most of them are in the process of identifying landfills, while some have even kept the basic infrastructure ready. Some of the ULBs have also made facilities to dispose of sanitary waste.

The DMA official said door-to-door collection of waste is carried out in some of the wards in some ULBs and segregation has been enforced partially. “It will take some time to enforce it more effectively,” he admitted. Along with such physical infrastructure, the department is also keen to bring in separate solid waste management bye-laws for ULBs, he added.

In 2012, solid waste management had snowballed into a major crisis in Bangalore  after villagers protested against dumping of waste at landfills near their villages. The BBMP took many steps, including making it mandatory for residents to segregate waste at source.

In October 2012, a notification was issued after cabinet approval. In March 2013, a penalty clause for non-segregation was included and the same is likely to be enforced after completing necessary administrative formalities. The BBMP plans to enforce it effectively after dry waste collection centres are ready in all wards.