Disposal of e-waste to authorized centres to be must from next May – ToI – 31.5.11

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: Starting May 2012, all old computers and electronic equipment will have to be disposed of to authorized collection centres that would deal with electronic waste (e-waste).
    Though the government had put up the e-waste (management and handling) rules in 2010, they have been notified recently. The problem of e-waste has turned serious, thanks to increased use of computers in the country.
    In 2007, the country generated 330,000 tonnes of e-waste — equivalent of 110 million laptops, says an industry report. The volumes of e-waste generation is rising sharply every year. About 10% of this e-waste is recycled, and the rest are refurbished.
    The waste contains chemicals that are polluting nature and at times even toxic. The handling of e-waste has also gained importance, with the country becoming a hub for imports along with China.
    The new rules require consumers to dispose off their old computers, TVs, refrigerators and other electronic waste with recognized collection centers that will be set up. The bulk consumers — corporate and other large units — will also have to maintain records of disposal of e-waste.
    The companies selling electronic goods too will be responsible for ensuring that their products do not end up in the grey market once their shelf life is over.
    But, implementation of the rule could prove tricky: a large percentage of computer market in India is dependent on assembled grey market, and usually the recycling occurs in small labour intensive units in towns like Moradabad or localities such as Seelampur in the national Capital.
    The already understaffed and relatively defunct-state pollution control boards would be incharge of monitoring the e-waste trade. The challenge is bound to increase, with the country’s exportimport policy allowing the import of e-waste in one garb or the other.