Awareness workshop on environmental hazards of e-waste
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, July 24 2017: Under the aegis of Digital India Awareness drive Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) in association with Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA), Manufacturers Association Information Technology (MAIT) and NASSCOM conducted a workshop on 'Environmental Hazards of Electronic Waste' in Imphal.

The workshop was inaugurated in the presence of N Deben, Additional Director, Department of Information Technology, Govt of Manipur and Rohit Kumar Singh, Manager – Corporate Affairs Planning & Strategy, CEAMA .

According to a release, the campaign was aimed at creating awareness amongst stakeholders involved in e-waste management in 10 Cities of the country thereby encouraging environmentally sound recycling through collective efforts across all relevant stakeholders in the e-waste value chain .

N Deben, Additional Director, the chief guest of the programme said that e-Waste is an important subject which needs a crucial attention which people are not much aware about .

He further urged the dealers that they should take this subject seriously and should work towards minimizing the generation of e-waste.

He said that the dealers can act as a nodal point in educating their channel partners regarding the hazardous effect of e-waste and its disposal .

He thanked CEAMA for championing this effort and making the dealers familiar about the new e-waste rules and the responsibilities which they have to undertake .

Manish Sharma, President, CEAMA said, e-Waste has been growing at an alarming rate in the Asian continent and has seen a jump of 63% over the course of the last 5 years, and India too has seen a phenomenal surge in the generation of e-Waste.

This increase is a cause for concern.

Hence the imperativeness of heightening the awareness of e-Waste to the community that deals with electronics, such as dealers, as well as school children, who are the citizens of the future .

“The awareness programme will also reach out to other stakeholders, including consumers, through out partners involved in this drive.

We see it as a vital step towards a safer and healthier environment," he added .

The awareness drive is an important step towards this initiative and would urge dealers and other respective stakeholders to take onus towards a safer and healthier environment .

Rohit Kumar Singh, Manager, Corporate Affairs, Planning and Strategy, CEAMA made a power point presentation elucidating the responsibilities of dealers towards e-waste in addition to highlighting the hazards of e-Waste on environment and its proper recycling .

He informed the dealers present during the occasion about the responsibility which they have to undertake in channelization of e-waste.

He also made a mention that dealers can act as a crucial stakeholder in educating their trade partners, retailers, consumers and other stakeholders regarding the impact of e-waste .

He further shared his thoughts regarding the proper management and disposal of e-waste and said that the e-waste should be handed over to an authorized recycler only.

He informed that the dealers can seek the details of authorized recyclers from the CPCB website also they can visit the Greene website which has been developed by Ministry of IT, Government of India to learn more about the safe disposal of e-Waste .

He informed that it is estimated that India would become the biggest dumping ground of e-waste by 2020 and therefore it is crucial at this juncture to ensure proper management and safe disposal of e-waste in the country .

Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA), established in the year 1978 is an all India body representing Consumer Electronics, Home Appliances and Mobile Industry.

This apex body aims to enhance the development of industry and its components to maintain fair competition and healthy practices among manufacturers, dealers and other stakeholders.

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