Lok Sabha
Electronic waste is included under List-A and List-B of Schedule-3 of the Hazardous Wastes (Management & Handling) Rules, 1989 as amended in 2000 & 2003. The import of this waste therefore requires specific permission of the Ministry of Environment and Forests. No such permission has been given to any authority or person by the Ministry till date. However, there have been unconfirmed reports in the media about illegal imports.
As the collection and re-cycling of electronic wastes is being done by the informal sector in our country at present, the Government has taken the following action/steps to enhance awareness about environmentally sound management of electronic waste: -
A National Workshop on Electronic Waste Management was organised by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in collaboration with Toxics Link, a Non-Governmental Organization in March 2004.
Action has been initiated by CPCB for rapid assessment of the E-Waste generated in major cities of the country.
A National Working Group has been constituted for formulating a strategy for E-Waste management.
A comprehensive technical guide on "Environmental Management for Information Technology Industry in India" has been published and circulated widely by the Department of Information Technology (DIT), Ministry of Communication and Information Technology.
A demonstration project has also been set up by the DIT at the Indian Telephone Industries, Palakkad, Kerala for recovery of copper from Printed Circuit Boards.
Several workshops and seminars have been organized in different parts of the country by the DIT on Environmental Management in Electronics Industry.
This information was given by the Minister of State for Environment and Forests Shri Namo Narain Meena in a written reply to a question from Shri Vijay Kumar Khandelwal in the Lok Sabha today.