CEMA conducts seminar on challenges of e-waste management

Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA) conducted a seminar on ‘Impending challenges on e-waste’ to discuss the draft E-waste rules and identify solutions to India’s mounting e-waste problem.

Present at the seminar Dr. Niloufer Shroff, senior director, Department of Electronics & IT views on the role of government in e-waste rules and Amit Jain, MD, IRG Systems deliberated on the draft notification of e-waste rules.

The seminar also conducted a panel discussion on ‘Re-coursing the syllabus: Impending challenges on e-waste’ which was moderated by, Priti Mahesh, chief program coordinator, Toxics Link. The panel discussion addressed the implications of the new e-waste rules in the country through a collective participation from panelists which included Dr. Shruti Rai Bhardwaj, joint director, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Anand Kumar, senior environmental engineer, Central Pollution Control Board, K. K. Saraf, assistant vice president Godrej Appliance Division, Shagufta Kamran, deputy director, MAIT, B. K. Soni, chairman and MD, Eco Reco, Guha Jayaram, Tes-Amm.

Sharing his views on the initiative, Manish Sharma, president, CEAMA and MD, Panasonic India and South Asia said, “We want to work towards creating an ecosystem of Recyclers, Producers, Collection Centres, Consumers and the Government. With the focus on the Make in India campaign, we look forward to an era of creating newer technologies in the Recycling Industry which will open collaboration with various International Partners for the same. ”

The panel also discussed about the new e-waste rules which have been introduced earlier this month. As per the newly introduced norms, e-waste rules now apply on manufacturers, producers, consumers, dealers, refurbishers, dismantler and recycler involved in manufacture, sale, transfer, purchase, collection, storage and processing of e-waste.

He further added, “Considering the existing E-waste management ecosystem in India, the seminar will provide a road map and bridge the gap between the Government’s intent and industry’s commitment to reach a practical solution required to make India environmentally safe and free from the potential risks of E-waste, helping us contribute in a big way to the ‘Swachch Bharat’ campaign.”

As a part of the seminar, CEAMA also presented a white paper on ‘E- Waste in India’ which highlighted the background of India’s E-waste management. The seminar was an effort towards evaluating e-waste rules and their environmental and socio-economic repercussions.