The Business Bytes
TBB BUREAU
BANGALORE, NOV 25, 2021
Xiaomi India, country’s No.1 smartphone and smart TV brand, on Thursday announced its partnership with Saahas Zero Waste to extend support for an e-waste awareness drive, initiated by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB).
In a month-long initiative, KSPCB along with the help of Saahas Zero Waste, Xiaomi India and other participating brands aim to spread awareness across all 31 districts of Karnataka reaching out to a total of approximately 5 million citizens.
With the support of Urban Local Bodies, all participating electronics retailers have pledged to station e-waste collection bins across all stores, after sales and service centers in Karnataka. The initiative will also include developing suitable awareness content, manage collection of all the e-waste and channelize the same for recycling to authorized recyclers.
Through awareness drives, KSPCB along with brands like Xiaomi India aim to build a sense of responsibility to repair, refurbish, donate and recycle amongst the consumers. The focus will be on collecting about 100 tonnes of e-waste over the next one month.
Commenting on the initiative, Manu Kumar Jain, Managing Director, Xiaomi India, said, “At Xiaomi India, our focus is not only on responsible recycling, but also on awareness generation. KSPCB’s initiative to spread awareness on e-waste is a step forward towards building a sustainable and future ready tomorrow. We are honoured and privileged to be a part of this e-waste drive in Karnataka. Our partnership with Saahas Zero waste further encourages us to push the boundaries of building a more sustainable and future ready tomorrow for consumers across the city.“
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Shanth A Thimmaiah, Chairman, Karnataka State Pollution Control Board, said “Disposal of e-waste, if not done properly, can be hazardous to the environment and health. While thousands of tonnes of waste is generated annually, many authorised recyclers and dismantlers say their vast plants remain woefully underused. Apart from requesting bulk generators to ‘voluntarily’ give information about the type of e-waste being generated, we aim to instill a sense of responsibility amongst the consumers as well. With this initiative, our aim is to not only spread awareness about the importance of proper e-waste management but also do our duty towards building a safer and cleaner environment. We are extremely proud to have brands like Xiaomi be part of our initiative and look forward to building a better and brighter India for future generations.”
According to the MEITY Annual Report 2020-2021, in 2019, India generated 3.2 million tonnes of e-waste of which only 10% was formally collected and recycled. While India has a very long way to go in correctly dealing with e-waste, the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board is making it possible through their awareness drives to fasten the process. Xiaomi India, in partnership with Saahas Zero Waste, aims at making this awareness drive a success.
