E-waste conundrum: Draft guidelines point to impractical over-regulation

Complaints by consumer electronics manufacturers against the Centre’s latest draft guidelines fixing minimum prices for recycling and processing of electrical and electronic waste point to impractical over-regulation in an industry that urgently needs to transition from the informal to the organised sector. Consumer electronics manufacturers have alleged that the draft guidelines have ignored their proposals to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. The rules have significantly increased the charges that manufacturers pay to recyclers to recycle e-waste products. For instance, the price of recycled metals has been increased to Rs 80 per kg, from Rs