Can Srinagar replicate Madanapalle’s zero-waste model?

Nadeem Sheikh – Ziraat Times

Andhra Pradesh town shows how science, citizen participation and political will can transform urban waste management

Madanapalle, a municipality in Andhra Pradesh with a population far smaller than Srinagar, is quietly demonstrating what many Indian cities continue to struggle with—turning waste from a liability into a resource.

Under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0, the town has embarked on an ambitious journey to become a “Zero Waste City,” combining source segregation, composting, recycling, biomining and citizen participation into a single integrated system. The question for Kashmir is whether Srinagar, with its growing waste crisis and mounting pressure on its fragile ecosystems, can adapt some of these lessons.

Madanapalle currently generates around 62 tonnes of municipal solid waste every day. Rather than treating it as a single waste stream, the municipality separates it into dry, wet and hazardous waste at source. Wet waste is converted into compost through windrow and vermicomposting, while dry waste is sorted at Material Recovery Facilities and either recycled or sent for co-processing in cement plants. Old clothes, books, e-waste and toys are repaired or redistributed through dedicated Reduce, Reuse and Recycle (RRR) centres.

Perhaps the most striking achievement has been the remediation of over 36,500 metric tonnes of legacy waste through biomining and bioremediation, reclaiming nearly 9.4 acres of land, a significant portion of which has been converted into green spaces.

Srinagar’s waste challenge

Srinagar’s waste management challenges are considerably more complex. The city sits within a sensitive Himalayan ecosystem and is home to iconic waterbodies such as Dal Lake, Nigeen Lake and the Jhelum river, all of which remain vulnerable to pollution and encroachment.

The Achan landfill continues to dominate public discussions on waste management. While authorities have made progress in biomining legacy waste and improving collection systems in recent years, the city continues to grapple with increasing waste generation, seasonal tourism pressures, limited segregation at source and inadequate recycling infrastructure.

Unlike Madanapalle, Srinagar must also contend with long winters, snowfall and difficult terrain that affect waste collection and processing operations.

What Srinagar can learn

Madanapalle’s model offers five lessons for Srinagar:

1. Segregation at source: Mandatory household segregation could significantly reduce the volume of waste reaching Achan.

2. Decentralized composting: Hotels, hospitals, educational institutions and large residential colonies could be encouraged to compost organic waste on-site. This is particularly relevant for Srinagar, where horticulture and urban gardening create demand for compost.

3. Material Recovery Facilities: Strengthening ward-level recovery centres could improve recycling rates and generate employment.

4. Biomining legacy waste: Accelerating remediation at existing dumpsites would help recover valuable land while reducing environmental risks.

5. Citizen participation: Waste management succeeds only when residents become active participants rather than passive consumers of municipal services.

A Kashmir-specific model

Replication, however, does not mean imitation.

Srinagar would need a model tailored to its geography and economy. A “Zero Waste Srinagar” initiative could include specialized waste management systems for houseboats, tourist destinations and vegetable markets. Seasonal waste surges during the tourist season would require flexible collection mechanisms.

The city could also explore converting horticultural waste into compost and biomass products, while establishing dedicated collection systems for plastic waste around Dal Lake and other ecologically sensitive areas.

Another opportunity lies in linking waste management with tourism. Clean lakes, litter-free parks and restored urban spaces are not just environmental assets; they are economic assets for a city whose identity is deeply tied to its natural beauty.

Beyond technology

Experts often point out that waste management is less about technology and more about governance. Madanapalle’s success appears to stem from a combination of administrative commitment, scientific planning and sustained public engagement.

For Srinagar, the challenge is not a lack of ideas. The technologies—composting, biomining, recycling and waste-to-art—already exist. The larger question is whether institutions can work in concert and whether citizens are willing to change long-standing habits.

As Srinagar expands and climate pressures intensify, the cost of inaction will only grow. Madanapalle’s experience suggests that even modest-sized municipalities can make significant progress when waste is viewed not as something to be buried, but as a resource to be recovered.

The road to a zero-waste Srinagar may be long, but the first step is straightforward: segregate, recover and recycle before the city’s waste finds its way into its lakes and rivers.