Govt to tie up with pvt agencies for settting up e-waste recycling units

Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Panchayat Raj and Rural Development, Environment, Forest, and Science & Technology, K. Pawan Kalyan, has announced plans to establish e-waste recycling units in each district headquarters of Andhra Pradesh in collaboration with private agencies. This initiative will supplement the existing six e-waste recycling units, reflecting the state’s commitment to improving its e-waste management capabilities. Andhra Pradesh currently ranks 12th nationally in e-waste collection and processing.
During the Legislative Council sessions chaired by Chairman Koyye Moshen Raju, Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan responded to queries about e-waste production. He noted that six registered e-waste recyclers are operational in Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam, Tirupati, and Anantapur, tasked with the collection, recycling, and disposal of e-waste.
He revealed that Andhra Pradesh collected and processed 2,021.19 tons of e-waste in the 2021-22 financial year, based on estimates from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), which derives data from country-wide sales reported by producers. The recyclers segregate e-waste into plastics, precious and other metals, hazardous waste, and other materials. Plastic waste is repurposed into granules/pellets, hazardous waste is managed by pre-processors and Treatment Storage Disposal Facilities (TSDF), and precious and other metals are extracted by the e-waste recycling units.
Additionally, Deputy CM Kalyan provided data on e-waste collection and recycling over the past three financial years. In 2020-21, approximately 229.083 tons of e-waste were collected, with 159.5 tons recycled. In 2021-22, 2,164.34 tons were collected and 2,114.5 tons recycled. For the 2022-23 fiscal year, 1,060 tons were recycled out of the 1,302.337 tons collected.