Sunday, December 25 2005 14:05 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Bangalore: The famed IT industry in the country's technology hub here may be flourishing business-wise in no small measure, but the top managements have been racking their brains on how to dispose off electronic-waste (e-waste) in the absence of guidelines governing the issues.

Most of the Bangalore-based IT biggies and MNCs with large operations have been storing their discarded computers in warehouses, not knowing what to do with them.

Those familiar with the situation say the quantity of computer-related e-waste generated in Bangalore alone could be as high as 8,000 tonnes annually.

The revised Hazardous Waste Management Rules of 2003 regulate import and export of e-waste but do not go into how one can manage it.

Besides, some of the big firms imported computers which give them waiver on excise duty, and central excise and customs duty rules stipulate that they should not dispose them off when the computers reach end-of-life, and they have take permission from Software Technology Parks of India.

Their option is to either give them off under donation to educational institutions who make good use of them, or destroy them, for which they need approval from Central Pollution Control Board.

"The industry is concerned", an IT official said.

"We are hesitant and a bit confused on how to deal with e-waste, " he said.

Sources in the foreign firms operating here say officials in their headquarters are very particular about environment, health and safety aspects while disposing of e-waste, and wouldn't want to take any hasty decisions.

"We want to follow all rules as we would be liable don't want to do anything", observed an executive of a large US corporation, which does not want to be caught on the wrong foot.

Business at E-parisara here, touted as the country's first 'computer graveyard', is dull.

"Shockingly low", was how its owner P Parthasarathy says when asked about the quantity of e-waste processed by the firm.

"In the last four months, we processed only 38-plus tonnes, while the capacity of our facility is one-tonne per day which we are scaling up to two tonnes per day," he said.

E-parisara is one of the two recyclers who have been authorised by the Pollution Control Board to collect e-waste.

Meanwhile, the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests has requested Bangalore-based Centre for Sustainable Development (CSD), headed by former Karnataka Chief Secretary A Ravindra, to prepare guidelines on management of e-waste not only from electronic equipment but also from electrical.

"CSD has come out with an initial draft and submitted it to the Ministry, and the industry body Manufacturers Association of Information Technology (MAIT) has also made comments of it," CSD Project Manager Naveen G V said.

Naveen said the draft has sought to identify products, which can come under the e-waste category. It also mooted an advanced recycling fee, which means that when a product is bought, the consumer pays an additional amount which is transferred to a recycle fund, that manages disposal of e-waste.

CSD, a non-profit NGO, is conducting a detailed study on the extent of e-waste generation in Bangalore in terms of computers, televisions and mobile phones, and processes being adopted to deal with it, he added.