In a grim prediction, industry body the Associated Chambers of Commerce of India (Assocham) estimates that in just two years India’s electronic waste generation is going to rise by a third to touch 30 lakh tonnes by 2018, up from about 18 lakh tonnes currently.

According to the Assocham-Frost and Sullivan report, Mumbai currently leads the pack in generating this waste with an annual 1.2 lakh tonnes, followed by Delhi (98,000 tonnes), and Bengaluru (92,000 tonnes).

Computer equipment accounts for almost 70 per cent of e-waste material, followed by telecommunication equipment (12 per cent), electrical equipment (8 per cent) and medical equipment (7 per cent), the study said. Further, it is estimated that over 70 per cent of the total e-waste comes from industries, and 15 per cent from households.

“The sad part is that a mere 2.5 per cent of India’s e-waste gets recycled because of the poor infrastructure and legislative framework, which leads to waste of diminishing natural resources, irreparable damage to the environment, and health of people working in the industry. Over 95 per cent of e-waste generated is managed by the unorganised sector and scrap dealers in this market,” the study said.

The study also flagged off concerns over the employment of children in the informal e-waste recycling industry without proper safeguards.

“It is a matter of concern that most of our e-waste is handled in the most unscientific way by scrap dealers, who may be inadvertently handling radioactive material, as was brought to light in the past in the Mayapuri (West Delhi) case,” Assocham Secretary-General DS Rawat said.

Electronic waste often has high quantities of toxic substances such as lead, cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, plastic, PVC, BFRs, barium, beryllium, and carcinogens such as carbon black and heavy metals that can leach into the soil and contaminate ground water.

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