E-Waste: What Every Indian Household Should Know
That old mobile phone in a drawer, a broken charger, unused earphones or a discarded laptop may look like ordinary household waste. They are not. They are e-waste, and how we dispose of them matters. With a booming economy, India is one of the world’s largest generators of electronic waste, and the amount is growing as we replace phones, appliances and electronic devices more frequently. E-waste can contain valuable materials that can be recovered and recycled, but it can also contain substances that may harm the environment if it is improperly handled. E-waste is also becoming an increasingly visible part of the dry-waste challenge. As smartphones, laptops, chargers, headphones, televisions, appliances and other electronic products become part of everyday life, the volume of discarded electronics is growing. Unlike ordinary paper, plastic or metal, e-waste requires specialised handling because electronic products contain both recoverable materials and components that can be harmful if...