Solid waste management (SWM) is one of the most neglected aspects of India's environment and the recent Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules 2000 have made it mandatory for the administrative authority of any area to undertake responsibility for all activities relating to municipal solid waste management (MSWM). A survey of MSWM practices in Indian urban local bodied (ULBs) and the literature suggest that major problems in MSWM in India are: underestimation of generation rates and therefore, underestimation of resource requirements, lack of technical and managerial inputs and lack of reliable and updated information to the public and practitioners in the field.