Maharashtra starts to regulate cities' e-waste

The western Indian state of Maharashtra is cracking down on electronic waste, penning new regulations to address the massive problem in cities such as Mumbai and Pune.

Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) is preparing fresh guidelines for e-waste management for the two cities that generate maximum e-waste in the state. 

Maharashtra is India's third largest state by area and second largest by population. It currently has one small facility to process e-waste in Andheri, but it cannot dismantle and recover materials.

Mumbai generates 23,000 metric tons (25,350 tons) of e-waste a year, while Pune is responsible for about 5,000 metric tons annually. The waste includes electronic and electrical equipment such as computers, televisions, washing machines and refrigerators and comes from both consumer goods and scraps of manufacturing facilities.

Delhi-based The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) said last year that Mumbai's lack of a management system means much of the e-waste goes to dumping grounds. TERI said that just two cities in the country—Delhi and Bangalore—have effective e-waste management systems in place. 

The MPCB plans to release rules on the collection, dismantling, physical segregation and recovery process for e-waste after a three-month study that's already underway by a consultant.

The sole disclosed venture capital deal in India in the third quarter of this went to Attero Recycling, an e-waste management and recycling company (see Cleantech venture investment reaches record of $2.6 billion in 3Q08).