Several studies have correlated education and income levels with environmental awareness. In practice, it is also due to corruption and the consequential failure of public services. The city I was born in (Dhanbad) suffers from rampant corruption, even by Indian standards - large swathes of the urban area have no other way to dispose of garbage other than paying private companies around $1-$2 per trash bag, which is then dumped in rivers and makeshift landfills.
Dhanbad allocated around $34 million dollars to its public waste management company a couple years ago, yet even today it still hasn't managed to get standardized trash bins and collection routes for most households. Endemic corruption and tax avoidance cripples virtually every public service in India, and any systems of regulation (law enforcement, bureaucracy, politicians, journalism, etc) are firmly captured by the business interests that perpetuate it.
Dhanbad allocated around $34 million dollars to its public waste management company a couple years ago, yet even today it still hasn't managed to get standardized trash bins and collection routes for most households. Endemic corruption and tax avoidance cripples virtually every public service in India, and any systems of regulation (law enforcement, bureaucracy, politicians, journalism, etc) are firmly captured by the business interests that perpetuate it.