Synopsis Managing solid waste has become crucial for the health of urban citizens and for improving competitiveness of cities in India. As a result of public interest litigation, the Supreme Court of India ruled that major cities were to adopt appropriate systems of solid waste management by 2003, and even published a detailed handbook describing appropriate steps and standards. This book is about the comparative research work undertaken in the eight cities in India, namely Bangalore, Hyderabad-Secunderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Ranchi, Suryapet (Andhra Pradesh) and Vejalpur (Gujarat), to assess the scale of the project, target groups, institutional framework, actors involved, innovation in practice, finance system, environmental impacts, conflicts, sustainability, and potential for up-scaling. Case studies show that some cases have been the subject of uncritical praise in the literature.