Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban

Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, is a fast-expanding urban hub with nearly 40 lakh residents and 7.5 lakh establishments. This rapid growth brings complex challenges in waste management and environmental sustainability. The Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) is addressing these through a multi-pronged strategy focused on scientific waste disposal, resource recovery, and sustainable urban development—enhancing both public health and environmental quality in the city.

In line with its scientific and sustainable approach to waste management, Lucknow has inaugurated its third fresh waste processing facility at Shivari Plant. With this, it becomes the first city in Uttar Pradesh to achieve 100% scientific processing of municipal solid waste—officially earning the distinction of a ‘zero fresh waste dump’ city.

The newly commissioned plant has a processing capacity of 700 metric tonnes per day. Together with the two existing facilities, the Lucknow Municipal Corporation is now equipped to scientifically process the entire daily waste generation of over 2,100 metric tonnes—eliminating the need for open dumping and marking a significant milestone in sustainable urban waste management.

The city generates around 2,000 metric tonnes of waste daily. To manage this, LMC and Bhumi Green Energy have set up three waste processing plants of 700 MT/day capacity each. Waste is segregated into organic (55%) and inorganic (45%) fractions. Organic waste is processed into compost and biogas, while inorganic waste is sorted for recycling or converted into Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) for use in cement and paper industries. Lucknow’s door-to-door waste collection efficiency has improved to 96.53%, and source segregation levels are above 70%.

As reported by the Municipal Corporation, from approximately 18.5 lakh metric tons of legacy waste in the city, around 12.86 lakh metric tons has been scientifically processed. The resulting RDF, C&D waste, bio-soil, and coarse fractions have been utilized in environmentally-friendly ways such as recycling, co-processing, and low-land filling. As waste is processed, several valuable by-products are being generated. Around 2.27 lakh metric tonnes of Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) has been dispatched to industries across India for co-processing in cement and paper manufacturing. Inert materials such as coarse fractions (4.38 lakh MT), bio-soil (0.59 lakh MT), and construction & demolition waste (2.35 lakh MT) has been repurposed for landfilling and infrastructure development in low-lying areas.

Gradually, this led to a significant transformation. Over 25 acres of land has been reclaimed at the site, which is now being developed into a fully functional fresh waste treatment facility with a daily processing capacity of 2,100 metric tonnes. The site now houses windrow pads, internal roads, sheds, dedicated weighbridges, and a complete waste processing ecosystem.

Way forward, the LMC is preparing to establish a Waste-to-Energy (WtE) plant at Shivari. The proposed facility will convert RDF from waste into electricity. The planned 15 MW WtE plant will use 1,000–1,200 metric tons of RDF daily, helping reduce the cost and distance of transporting RDF to cement factories located nearly 500 km away.

Lucknow’s waste management model reflects a strong commitment to circular economy principles—maximizing resource recovery, minimizing legacy waste, and promoting the reuse of recyclables. The initiatives of the Lucknow Municipal Corporation stand as a model of inspiration for other cities and agencies, both within India and internationally.