DARE - Because Entrepreneurs Do

With technology sales booming and e-waste piling up, recycling this waste is on its way to attract more people to this business.

“Iske andar bahut paisa hai. Ye sone ke pahad jaisa hai.” (It has lots of money. It’s like a mountain of gold).

This is how Syed Hussain, an e-waste recycler in Bangalore, describes his business. Considering the business he deals in is “high volume, with good returns”, this does not seem like an exaggeration. We are talking about one of the biggest “crisis” India is facing—electronic waste, better known as ‘e-waste’.

A recent study done on e-waste in India, by GTZ (German Technical Cooperation Agency) and MAIT (a body representing India’s IT hardware, training and R&D sectors) pegs the total e-waste of the country in 2007 at an astounding 3.3 lac tons. This number is expected to touch 4.7 lac tons by 2011. The study done takes into account PCs, TVs and mobile handsets in India. However, TVs, PCs and mobiles are only a small part of the entire e-waste spectrum; there are many other equipments that come under this category (see box).

E-waste defined
As there is no formal definition in the country as to what all comes under electronic waste, the directive by EU is generally taken as a reference point while assessing the situation in India. EU defines e-waste as, “Electrical or electronic equipment that is waste including all components, sub-assemblies and consumables, which are part of the product at the time of discarding.”

“Waste” is defined as “any substance or object the holder disposes of or is required to dispose of pursuant to the provisions of national law in force.”

EU relies on “national law” to define waste. However, in developing countries like India, which have more lax environmental legislation, this may not always apply. Therefore, while in EU countries e-waste recycling is governed by strict laws, in India, people like Hussain look at it more as a recycling opportunity. “The way I would define recycling is, take a goat and separate the meat, bones and skin from it. Skin would go to a shoemaker to be used in making shoes and chappals, bones and meat would go to their respective needs. This is how I see recycling.”

Street estimates for recycle value
	(rupee figures)
PC	1800
Mobilephone	175
TV	1200

Satish Sinha, Associate Director of Toxics Link, an NGO that has been working on the issues of toxics and waste, agrees with Hussain about the standalone prospects of the recycling business. “Electronic waste is a bouquet of many electrical and electronic products and some of these products have high-intrinsic material value. Computers, especially, have very high material value and if recycled properly, 95-98% of the materials can be recovered and put back in the process of material flow. The business is stated to be profitable, and both the formal and informal sectors are profiting from such trade,” he says.

Syed Hussain, who started ASH Recyclers in 2001 still signs his name with a thumbprint, owns a Honda car and two apartments in Bangalore. Little wonder then that Hussain compares the mounds of e-waste lying in his yard to a ‘mountain of gold’.

Not a wasteful opportunity
The size of the opportunity could well be imagined when one considers two factors—3.3 lac tons of e-waste in India and three authorized recyclers present in the country. As it is, this figure only includes PCs, TVs and mobiles.

Categories of electrical and electronic equipment covered by EU Directive on e-waste

Large household appliances (ACs, refrigerators) Small household appliances (vacuum-cleaners, toasters, watches) IT and telecommunications equipment (PCs, printers, phones) Consumer equipment (TVs, cameras) Lighting equipment (different kinds of lamps) Electrical and electronic tools (drills, saws, sewing machines) Toys, leisure and sports equipment (video games, game consoles) Medical devices (cardiology equipment) Monitoring and control instruments (smoke detectors, heating regulators) Automatic dispensers

“Even a tube light gives not less than Rs 20 to Rs 25 recyclable worth," Hussain cites an example of how profitable these other e-wastes are. “People are not aware of the worth of metals present in these things.”

So, if this business is so highly profitable, why is it that there are only three formal recyclers in the country? Why, when the volumes are so high, a significant part of it is lying unused?

The answer lies in the lack of awareness and proper legislation in India. However, there is increasing pressure on the government to frame strong policies in this regard. Many expect the government to come out with stronger legislation that will benefit recyclers by stipulating certain types of electronic items to be disposed off only through organized e-waste disposal firms, and forcing corporations to provide facilities such as collection centers for recyclers.

Perhaps, it is not a coincidence that plans for a 12,000-ton private sector e-waste-recycling plant in Haridwar, the biggest of its kind in India, was announced only last month. The plant, to be completed in four to five months, will involve an investment of Rs 25 crore.

“The electrical and electronic equipment waste industry is among the largest and fastest growing industries in the world,” says MR Deshpande National Project Coordinator of e-Waste Initiative, a joint effort by the Indian, German and Swiss governments to promote awareness and safe handling of e-waste. Deshpande traces the e-waste opportunity to tremendous growth of the Indian IT industry during the last decade. “Early product obsolescence, resulting from continuous innovation, has been resulting in electronic waste turning into the fastest growing waste stream. As such, recycling is attracting the attention of many.”

Not only are Indian players looking at entering the Indian e-waste industry, but there are companies from outside who are also looking for joint ventures here. For example, ASH Recyclers are in talks with a foreign company to set up a joint venture.

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