City of Joy's emergence as destination for e-waste!

By Priti Mahesh

Electronic waste seems to be increasing rapidly in the major cities like national capital Delhi and commercial capital Mumbai. A trip to Kolkata seems to suggest that other metros are catching with e-waste recycling emerging as a highly profitable pursuit for the traders. With over 11 million inhabitants, Kolkata is among one of the biggest cities of Asia.

In Kolkata, the technological boom has happened only after it peaked in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai. Computerization has now invaded the City of Joy and so has the menace of e-waste. Government offices, banks, multinationals, private companies seem to be main source for this. Household contribution to e-waste stream is still minimal, 'Kolkatans' believe in using the product till the very end.

Most of the big companies (public and private) are disposing off their waste through official tenders (published in newspapers) or auctions. Some of them have though, in recent years, embraced the exchange policy wherein they return the old computers and get some discount on the new purchase. And in some cases, where the e-waste generation is small, the companies just dispose off their waste to the local ‘kabaddiwala’.

Where does all this waste land up?

A visit to the by lanes of Chandni Chowk throws some light to this question. Chandni Chowk is a busy commercial area in the very heart of the city. This stretch has all but lost its entire footpath to hawkers. The encroacher sell a variety of items, including second hand electronic goods (television, computers, music systems etc), mobile phones etc. One can find array of items in these temporary, unauthorised structures, from a monitor to a mouse, from a keyboard to a tiny capacitor. The hawkers get these old computers mainly from local companies. If you are interested in assembling a computer of your own- this is probably the best place, as you will find every part and being second hand- much cheaper than the original prices. One can get a DVD writer in 180-200 rupees with a little bargain! Many lab technicians, professors, hardware repair personnel also visit these areas to get electronic parts as per their requirement. The road has a large number of repair shops as well which probably uses some of the components available here and also adds waste in the market.

In midst of these streets, one can find people breaking different parts of computers to get the material they require- the rest is thrown in a nearby dustbin or dumped in the road! The seemingly illiterate hawkers and labourers do know about 286s, 386s and 486s versions being obsolete and break open these to get different materials, mainly metals like copper. The methods used are rudimentary and the people engaged in these activities seem completely oblivious of the ill effects of handling this hazardous variety of waste.

Many recycling plants are also mushrooming in the different parts of the city. Though the trade is rampant, nobody is ready to admit that they are part of this. Rajabazar, Kankurgachi, Phoolbagan are some of the areas where the unauthorised recycling is happening regularly. The waste, which is, recycled in Kolkata and the adjoining areas of Howrah are not just waste generated in the city but there also lot of waste coming from the other parts of the country. The usable parts are sold unit wise to the local traders and rest are dealt as scrap. The recycling units in Kolkata mainly extract valuable metals like gold platinum, copper and sell it the smelting plants. The remaining plastic and glass parts are sold further for extraction and recycling. There is also part of this waste that is going to places like Delhi, which is hub of recycling activities. The printed wire boards are normally bought by the Delhi traders and brought to areas like Shahadra for further processing.

According to a source, lot of PVC wire burning for copper extraction happens in these areas and also near the Ganges riverbank. The people involved in this work being aware of its harmful nature, the burning generally takes place in the evenings after sunset and bribes are paid to the local police to carry the illegal activities. These fumes are not only polluting the air but also the water body.

Though the state pollution board recognizes this growing problem, there has been hardly any activity or action from their side. According to an officer in the board, they have heard about the recycling units in and around the city, but they have failed in locating these. Can this be actually true when these units are burgeoning in the heart of the city?