ITC Paperboards and Specialty Papers Division (PSPD) on Thursday said it has collaborated with Invest India to launch the ‘ITC Sustainability Innovation Challenge’ to support innovative start-up ideas on sustainable packaging and smart waste management solutions.

The company said this partnership will enable ITC-PSPD to leverage on the country's " rich start-up repertoire" as well as provide support to the start-up ecosystem.

ITC PSPD is inviting responses from startups for challenges laid out by the Company to find sustainable and smart technology-based solutions that can substitute single-use plastics and automate the waste segregation process to improve efficiency and speed.

The selected startups will be offered incentives at various stages of the programme. This includes mentorship from experts, paid pilot opportunity, and assistance in testing and certification at the ’Development Stage’. The company will further support market expansion and capacity building through funding opportunities in the ’Early Market Play Stage’. Additionally, startups, at the ‘Late Stage’ will get procurement opportunities and could be evaluated for funding and acquisition opportunities as well, the statement added.

The deadline to submit proof of concept is February 28.

Vadiraj Kulkarni, CEO of ITC PSPD said, “Disposal of plastic and non-biodegradable waste continues to pose the biggest challenge in solid waste management in India. The problem is further aggravated due to inefficient segregation of post-consumer waste at the source which leads to a lot of waste ending up in landfills which is highly polluting. We believe that businesses, both big and small, with their immense managerial and innovative capacity, can come together to contribute significantly towards finding innovative and sustainable packaging and waste management solutions."

He added that ‘ITC Sustainability Innovation Challenge’ will enable the company to crowdsource out-of-the box ideas for phasing out single-use plastics by 2022 in collaboration with Invest India.

Deepak Bagla, MD & CEO, Invest India, added, “We look forward to accelerating efforts towards a more sustainable economic growth through the ITC Innovative Sustainability Challenge. Innovative startups will be able to showcase Made-in-India solutions that propel India towards a circular economy.”

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