Reducing, reusing and recycling were part of the Indian ethos long before the 3Rs became the mantra for sustainable development globally. However, as a $2.6 trillion economy, India has realised the need to have a national framework for efficiently managing resources, and, more importantly, systematising the recycling industry in such a way that the Utopian goal of a circular economy is realised.
The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has brought out the National Draft Policy on Efficient Management of Resources, which has some very ambitious goals. These goals include 100 per cent recycling of PET plastic by 2025, a total ban on disposal of any recyclable waste (plastic, metal, wood) into landfills by 2025 and 90 per cent recycling of all vehicles made after 2000 that have reached the end-life stage.
The goals are ambitious, given that there is no overarching recycling policy in the country at present, and well-meaning efforts are often more problematic. The draft flags one of these initiatives: The National Green Tribunal's decision to ban diesel vehicles after 10 years of service. The draft notes that the move has only resulted in increasing the number of end-life vehicles (ELVs) in India. It projects that by 2025, there will be over 21 million ELVs in the country.
Given India's low-tech approach and the requirements of a rapidly urbanising economy, the current statistics are worrisome, the draft notes.
India's resource extraction of 1,580 tonnes/acre is much higher than the global average of 450 tonnes/acre. India is the world's third-largest emitter of Carbon Dioxide and extracts the highest amount of water for agriculture. In short, the stress on resources that the Indian economy puts is huge. And despite its culture of reuse, in the absence of systems in place, India's recycling rate of 20-25 per cent is far below that of Europe at 70 per cent. The result of this is a lot of material that could have been reused keeps going into landfills and creating an additional problem.
The draft policy recommends the setting up of a National Resource Efficiency Authority (NREA) that will develop action plans, do capacity building, train people and measure progress in resource efficiency management. It proposed a material recovery facility to be set up for end-of-life collections, a Green Fund to invest in emerging technologies and the idea of extended producer responsibility, which exists in Western economies.
The draft is in the public domain and the ministry has invited suggestions and comments on it from stakeholders and concerned citizens.