Based on the above passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. Collection, processing and segregation of municipal waste should be with government agencies. 2. Resource recovery and recycling require technological inputs that can be best handled by private sector enterprises. Which of the assumptions given above is/are correct?

Passage

In India, the segregation of municipal waste at source is rare. Recycling is mostly with the informal sector. More than three-fourths of the municipal budget goes into collection and transportation, which leaves very little for processing/resource recovery and disposal. Where does waste-to-energy fit into all this? Ideally it fits in the chain after segregation (between wet waste and rest), collection, recycling, and before getting to the landfill. Which technology is most appropriate in converting waste to energy depends on what is in the waste (that is biodegradable versus non-biodegradable component) and its calorific value. The biodegradable component of India's municipal solid waste is a little over 50 per cent, and biomethanation offers a major solution for processing this.

Question

CSATEasyPrelims 2023Comprehension

Based on the above passage, the following assumptions have been made:

Collection, processing and segregation of municipal waste should be with government agencies.
Resource recovery and recycling require technological inputs that can be best handled by private sector enterprises.

Which of the assumptions given above is/are correct?

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect: The passage nowhere makes any assertion indicating that collection, processing and segregation of municipal waste should be with government agencies. In fact, the passage suggests that "More than three-fourths of the municipal budget goes into collection and transportation, which leaves very little for processing/resource recovery and disposal”, indicating how the municipal system (under the government) is already stressed.

Statement 2 is incorrect: The passage nowhere makes any assertion indicating that resource recovery and recycling require technological inputs that can be best handled by private sector enterprises. The passage only limits itself to saying that “which technology is most appropriate in converting waste to energy depends on what is in the waste (that is biodegradable versus non-biodegradable component) and its calorific value." and further that “The biodegradable component of India's municipal solid waste is a little over 50 per cent, and biomethanation offers a major solution for processing this.” So, the passage makes a case for the mode of resource recovery and recycling, i.e., bio methanation, rather than which sector should perform it.