Electronic waste in India

Electronic waste

in India

A systems study of a crisis hiding in plain sight

India is the world's third largest e-waste generator, yet most of it disappears into an informal sector that recycles without regulation, safety, or accountability. This is a systems design study of why and where design can intervene.

Systems Thinking

Policy Design

Designing for Future

Design & Poetry

Artwork credit: Lalitya Krishnan | Tool: Procreate

Institution

NID Bengaluru

Project Type

Systems thinking

Duration

10 Weeks | 2022

Faculty Mentor

Mr. Balaji Rengarajan

Target Audience

EEE Indian Users

*Electronics & Electrical Equipment

Electronic goods and increased digital connectivity drive global development, supporting everything from education and healthcare to the 17 SDGs. This reliance has only intensified recently, as the pandemic permanently accelerated the global shift toward digitalization in business and daily life.

However, the current lifecycle of electronics is highly unsustainable, demanding a major systemic reboot. The world now generates approximately 50 million tonnes of e-waste annually, yet only 20% is formally recycled. If production, consumption, and disposal habits remain unchanged, this waste is projected to more than double to 120 million tonnes per year by 2050.

Design Framework

5D design

process

The 5D framework, Discover, Describe, Determine, Develop, Deliver, gave structure to a problem space that is vast, non-linear, and easy to get lost in. Each phase had a clear output that fed the next, turning open-ended research into a focused design intervention. For systems thinking work, that kind of staged discipline isn't a constraint, it's what makes the complexity navigable.

Discover

Introduction

Identifying the area
Understanding area

Describe

Systems thinking

Area briefing
Research insights
Brainstorming

Systems mapping

Sequence mapping
Stakeholder mapping
Causal loop diagram
Unfolding the systems

Systems understanding

Social impact
Environmental impact
Economical impact

Determine

Potential areas to work

Opportunity mapping
Identifying the potential areas

Target area

Target area: why & how?
Understanding the focus area
Understanding the end users
Validating the hypothesis

Develop

Communication strategies

What, how & why?
Current practices
Identifying the challenges

Design brief

Design brief
Demographics

Deliver

Proposed solutions

Persona: challenges & goals
Communication strategies
Planning & execution
Future scope of the project

Discover

Identifying & understanding

problem area

Introduction

Improper e-waste disposal through burning or dumping poses severe risks to human health and the environment, directly hindering the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

To combat this, better data and insights on e-waste are critical. Improved tracking helps protect health and the environment (SDGs 3, 6, 11, 12, and 14), while waste management unlocks new opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship (SDG 8).

What are E-Products?

Electrical and electronic products are defined as any household or business item with circuitry, or electrical components with power or battery supply. Categories of Electrical and Electronic Equipments:

Information technology & telecommunication equipments
Microprocessors, minicomputers
Telephone
Personal computer/ notebook/ laptop
Facsimile & telex
Printing included cartridges
Cellular phones
Scanning devices
Others
Consumer electrical & electronics equipments
Television set
Fluorescent (mercury containing lamps)
Refrigerator
Air conditioner
Washing machine

Information technology & telecommunication equipments
Microprocessors, minicomputers
Telephone
Personal computer/ notebook/ laptop
Facsimile & telex
Printing included cartridges
Cellular phones
Cellular phones
Cellular phones
Consumer electrical & electronics equipments
Television set
Fluorescent (mercury containing lamps)
Refrigerator
Air conditioner
Washing machine

What is E-Waste?

Electronic waste (e-waste) refers to all discarded electronic products and parts not intended for reuse. Because this waste stream contains toxic substances, such as lead, mercury, PCBs, and CFCs, it requires specialized treatment and cannot be safely dumped in landfills.

However, alongside these hazardous risks, e-waste also contains highly valuable materials like gold, silver, copper, and plastics that can be recovered through proper recycling.

Composition Analysis

Major Contents of E-Waste

Metals

60%

Plastics

15%

CRT & LCD Monitors

12%

Metal Plastics Mixture

Pollutants

Cables

Printed Circuit Board

Others

Generation of E-Waste

E-waste is a unique category of waste. Along with hazardous materials, it also contains precious substances like silver, gold, platinum, palladium, nickel and copper. For this reason, we do not see e-waste lying around on the streets or in the common bins of our cities and villages. E-waste handling is lucrative business, attracting the informal as well as the formal sector.

Higher level of disposable incomes

Higher consumption rate of E-products

Shorter product lifecycle

Urbanization

Industrialization

Less repair options

Technical growth

Major cause of E-waste generation

Management of E-Waste

Informal sector

Despite over seven years of formal regulation, nearly 90% of India's e-waste is still handled by the informal sector. It keeps vast volumes out of landfills and sustains millions of livelihoods, but the environmental and health costs of non-scientific dismantling remain unaddressed.

Kabadi Shop

Scrap Dealers

Recyclers

Kabadiwala

Refurbishers

Dismantlers

Formal sector

The formal sector, comprising government-approved Producer Responsibility Organisations, authorised recyclers, and certified dismantlers, is designed to process e-waste scientifically, without environmental harm. In India, it handles only 10% of what is actually generated.

Bulk Consumers

Industries

Government

Retail Consumers

Refurbishers

Recyclers

Dealers

OEMs

Retail

Dismantlers

Why informal sector exists?

Unregulated

Money making

Cheap Labor:

Child & Women

Access to

waste & flexibility

Strong Network of Informal Sector

Valuable Materials

Inside E-waste

Lack of Industrial

Recycling Infra

Livelihood

Lack of Awareness Among Consumers

Informal Sector Recycling Process

How ~90% of India's e-waste is processed

Why formal sector exists?

Sensitize People

About the Problem

Efficient Material

Recovery

Reduce

Health Hazard

Partnering with informal sector

Scientific Processing

Encourage

Entrepreneurship

Develop Recycling

Infrastructure

Ban Illegal

E-waste Import

Formal Sector Recycling Process

How ~10% of India's e-waste is scientifically processed

Factors affecting E-waste

Material Mining

Growing demand for electronics is increasing pressure on raw material supplies. Recycling metals uses 2–10× less energy and generates 80% lower CO₂ emissions compared to mining virgin ores.

Lithium-ion Batteries

The lithium-ion battery market is expected to reach $150 billion by 2030, driven by smartphones and EVs. Battery demand will grow rapidly, with annual sales projected to reach 8 million tonnes, while recycling rates remain low at 42%.

Informal sector

Rising demand for low-cost electronics has fueled the counterfeit market. Counterfeiting causes significant economic losses, with fake electronic components becoming increasingly common due to affordability and limited consumer awareness.

Policies of E-waste

E-Waste Rules, 2011 came into effect on 1 May 2012 under the Environmental Protection Act, 1986.
Ensured safe handling, storage, transportation, and recycling of e-waste.
E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016 replaced the 2011 Rules on 1 October 2016.
Expanded coverage to manufacturers, dealers, refurbishers, and PROs.
PROs help collect and channel e-waste for responsible recycling and disposal.
Promotes environmentally sound e-waste management in India.

E-Waste Rules, 2011 came into effect on 1 May 2012 under the Environmental Protection Act, 1986.
Ensured safe handling, storage, transportation, and recycling of e-waste.
E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016 replaced the 2011 Rules on 1 October 2016.
Expanded coverage to manufacturers, dealers, refurbishers, and PROs.
PROs help collect and channel e-waste for responsible recycling and disposal.
Promotes environmentally sound e-waste management in India.

Research insights

In 2019, the world generated a striking 53.6 Mt of e-waste, an average of 7.3 kg per capita. India generated 3.2 million metric tonnes (Mt) of e-waste in 2019.

Third largest e-waste generator after the top two countries China (10.1 Mt) and the USA (6.9 Mt), though its per-capita contribution (2.4 kg) to the hazardous waste is much below the global average (7.3 kg).

Current rate of e-waste generation in India is 4.56 times greater than the annual e-waste processing capacity offered by the nation. Low Recycling capacity with only 312 Authorized Recyclers (8 lakh tons annually).

E-Waste by State

% contribution to India's annual e-waste generation

Tap a state

% Share

10%+

7–10%

5–7%

3–5%

2–3%

1–2%

< 1%

Top Generators

Maharashtra13.1%

Delhi9.5%

Tamil Nadu9.3%

Karnataka8.9%

Uttar Pradesh7.6%

Scale of the problem

How much

electronic waste

do we generate

every year?

How much

electronic waste

do we generate

every year?

We in India generate around, 3.2 million tons

of electronic waste every year

that is equivalent to 1000+ Statue of Unity.

We in India generate around, 3.2 million tons of electronic waste every year that is equivalent to

1000+ Statue of Unity.

Describe

Systems thinking

and mapping

Sequence mapping

Sequence mapping traces the complete journey of an electronic product, from raw material extraction to end-of-life disposal, making every actor, handoff, and exit point visible in a single view. For e-waste, it revealed that the formal product lifecycle and the informal recycling economy are not separate systems but one connected sequence, and that most of the problem lives in the gaps between them.

Sequence Mapping

Comparative tracking of e-waste pipelines vs. formal device lifecycles

E-Waste Flow System

Product Lifecycle Path

Hover any structural system node to inspect tracking metrics

Primary Pipeline

Mitigation / Recovery

Hazard & EOL Risks

Intervention Channels

Stakeholder Mapping

Stakeholder mapping identified every actor in the Indian e-waste ecosystem, from global policy bodies and national regulators down to kabadiwala networks, product designers, and individual consumers, and made visible how their interests, responsibilities, and incentives relate to one another. The exercise revealed that the system's dysfunction is not the result of any single actor failing, but of misaligned incentives across all four layers simultaneously.

Institutional Stakeholder Architecture

Nested oversight layer alignment from macro global rules down to execution channels

Hover any layout stakeholder entity line above to track system definitions.

Causal Loop Diagram

The causal loop diagram mapped the feedback loops sustaining India's e-waste crisis, showing how informal sector economics, consumer behaviour, policy gaps, and industry incentives reinforce each other in cycles that no single intervention can break. It made visible what systems analysis always reveals: that the problem is not a chain of causes but a web of them, where pulling one thread tightens several others.

Causal Loop Ecosystem

System feedback loops driving and sustaining systemic electronic waste variables

Social Impact

E-waste contains highly toxic substances like lead, mercury, chromium, and cadmium that contaminate water sources and food supply chains when improperly handled.
While extracting these valuable components provides vital income for the informal sector in developing countries, primitive recycling methods—such as burning plastics, melting lead in open pots, or using acid baths—dangerously expose workers and their families to severe health hazards.

Hazardous Components in E-Waste & Their Harmful Effects

Environmental Impact

Electronic waste damages the environment through three main sources: hazardous elements within the equipment, auxiliary substances used during recycling, and toxic byproducts generated during processing.
Informal practices, such as open dismantling, shredding, burning, leaching, and uncontrolled dumping, directly threaten workers while contaminating soil, groundwater, surface water, and air.

Types of emissions and pathways of pollutants

Informal e-waste recycling — tap any element to explore

Leachates

Coarse particles

Fire particles

Fly ashes

Fumes

Effluents

Wastewater

Solid materials

Tap any process, emission dot, or substance to learn more

coloured dots = emission types · dashed arrows = transport pathways

Economical Impact

The world's most valuable material deposits are sitting in landfills and homes, not underground. A ton of smartphones contains 100 times more gold than a ton of traditional gold ore. E-waste yields up to 350g of gold per tonne, while traditional mines produce just 5–6g. Extracting raw materials from natural ore is 13 times more expensive than urban e-waste mining. Recycling electronics is no longer just an environmental choice, it is an economic necessity.