India to Build First Public Sector E-Waste Recycling Plant

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The Indian Ministry has announced setting up of its first government-run e-waste recycling plant in Bengaluru- the country’s technology headquarters and the capital city of Karnataka state in southern India. This will be the first such recycling facility in the government sector. The plant, most likely to be located in Electronic City, is likely to be up and running within four months.

The state-of-the-art e-waste recycling facility will be set up by the Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology (CIPET) - a research institute under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers. According to Minister Ananth Kumar, Bengaluru is considered as the third largest producer of e-waste among major Indian cities. The city, popularly known as the Silicon Valley of India, is host to large number of IT companies.

ALSO READ: Nigeria’s E-Waste Recycling Facility Declares Key Partnership with Informal Sector

The project is expected to open up entrepreneurship opportunities in the field of high performance plastics and metal waste. The success of this pilot project may lead to setting up of similar recycling units in other cities. The capacity of the e-waste recycling plant is not disclosed. However, the Minister noted that the plant would employ most modern technologies to manage and process electronic waste in the best eco-friendly manner possible. These latest technologies will recycle e-waste plastics into wide range of value-added products for various applications.

As per estimates, India generates nearly 18 lakh tonnes of e-waste every year, being among world’s top five e-waste generating countries. Only 5% of these e-waste reaches authorized recyclers and dismantlers, whereas the remaining 95% are handled by the unorganized sector. The players in unorganized sector make use of unscientific ways to dismantle e-waste, which in turn poses significant threat to environment. Alarmingly, India’s e-waste volumes are estimated to grow by 30% per annum.