Study shows the India is the fifth largest producer of e waste
Posted on: 29/May/2016 11:46:22 AM
A study conducted by Assocham KPMG has said that India is the fifth largest producer of e waste. The study says that the country discards roughly 18.5 lakh tonnes of waste a year.
Says the report, Telecom equipment alone accounts for 12 per cent of the e-waste. The rising levels of e-waste generation in India have been a matter of concern in recent years. With more than 100 crore mobile phones in circulation, nearly 25 per cent end up in e-waste annually. India has surely emerged as the second largest mobile market with 1.03 billion subscribers, but also the fifth largest producer of e-waste in the world, discarding roughly 18.5 lakh metric tonnes of electronic waste each year, with telecom equipment alone accounting for 12 per cent of the e-waste.
E waste management rules for 2016 were recently prescribed by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. The rules said that the producers are now covered under extended producers’ responsibility (EPR). Says the study, The rules prescribe stringent financial penalties for non-compliance. However, the study said the unorganised sector in India is estimated to handle around 95 per cent of the e-waste produced in the country. Given the huge user base and vast reach of telecom in India, it is practically difficult and expensive for the handset manufacturers to achieve the targets prescribed in the rules from first year. It is suggested that electronic waste collection targets are implemented in a phased manner with lower and practically achievable target limits. Also, detailed implementation procedures for collection of electronic waste from the market need to be followed.
