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By:

Dr. Sanjay Joshi

31 August 2024 at 8:35:29 pm

Seelampur: Where the World’s Discarded Technology Ends Up

In the absence of enough authorised recycling facilities, even unauthorised units are filling a vital gap. Seelampur, on the outskirts of Delhi, is almost like a huge marketplace for discarded technology. Old laptops, broken mobile phones, outdated computers and damaged monitors are piled up everywhere. The narrow, crowded lanes are filled with the constant sounds of hammers hitting metal, tools scraping against machines and workers shouting instructions. But behind this chaotic marketplace...

Seelampur: Where the World’s Discarded Technology Ends Up

In the absence of enough authorised recycling facilities, even unauthorised units are filling a vital gap. Seelampur, on the outskirts of Delhi, is almost like a huge marketplace for discarded technology. Old laptops, broken mobile phones, outdated computers and damaged monitors are piled up everywhere. The narrow, crowded lanes are filled with the constant sounds of hammers hitting metal, tools scraping against machines and workers shouting instructions. But behind this chaotic marketplace lies a vast and complex network. According to a February 2023 report published in the Economic and Political Weekly, around 5,000 unregistered e-waste processing units operate in Seelampur. Although they do not have official authorisation, these units play an important role in India's e-waste management system. The network of workers here is quite complex. At one end are kabadiwallas, who collect discarded electronic items from different parts of Delhi. These items then pass through several hands before reaching the people who dismantle, repair, recover or recycle them. And the story does not end with waste generated within Delhi—or even within India. What is even more worrying is that e-waste reaching Seelampur does not always come only from within India. Reports indicate that truckloads of electronic waste also enter India from countries such as China, Dubai, and many other developed nations. Why would anyone send e-waste all the way to India? The answer is simple: properly treating and recycling e-waste is expensive. Sending it to places where labour and processing costs are much lower can save large amounts of money. This points to a problem that extends far beyond Seelampur. India has rules prohibiting the import of e-waste. The 2016 e-waste rules specifically prohibit such imports, and the international Basel Convention, adopted in 1989, also regulates the movement of hazardous waste across national borders. Yet, despite these regulations, illegal imports continue. E-waste can enter through loopholes in the system, false or altered documents, and informal networks of middlemen and transporters. Old computer monitors, CPUs and other electronic equipment that should not be imported may be mixed with legitimate goods. Once they enter the country, they can make their way through a chain of traders and transporters until they finally reach places such as Seelampur. Thus, what we see in the crowded lanes of Seelampur is not merely a local waste problem. It is part of a much larger global e-waste chain, connecting consumers, traders, transporters, recyclers, and even international waste flows. So, why does so much of this waste end up in the informal sector? One of the main reasons is quite simple: India does not have enough authorised recycling facilities to deal with the enormous amount of e-waste being generated. As of February 2025, India had only 322 registered and authorised e-waste recyclers. This number is far too low to handle the rapidly growing volume of electronic waste. As a result, a large share of e-waste continues to be collected, dismantled and processed by informal scrap dealers and unorganised collectors. There is also a practical reason for this. People often find it easier to hand over their e-waste to a nearby scrap dealer or kabadiwalla rather than search for an authorised recycler. This is what allows informal hubs such as Seelampur to remain an important part of India's e-waste ecosystem. Seelampur is one of the best-known examples of such an informal e-waste hub. Similar informal e-waste processing centres exist in many parts of India, including several locations in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). More information on this in my next article. Till then, have a great weekend! (The writer is an environmentalist. Views personal.)

Lateral upgrade to ailing annihilation

Updated: Oct 21, 2024

Lateral upgrade to ailing annihilation

Being the first person from the private sector to be appointed as chairperson of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) as part of the government’s lateral initiative, Madhabi Puri Buch also holds the honour of being the first woman to hold the top post as capital market regulator.

But the laurels that the former private sector banker enjoyed in her earlier stint with ICICI Bank, was marred with allegations that she and her husband were having a stake in offshore entities, which were used to artificially inflate shares of Adani group companies.

Terming the allegation as `character assassination, Buch clarified that all disclosures have already been furnished and the fund in question did not invest in any securities involving the Adani group.

When it rains, it pours. This allegation was subsequently followed by Congress Party allegation that Buch had received salary and post-retirement benefits from ICICI Bank after she quit the private sector bank.

In its clarification to the stock exchanges, ICICI Bank asserted that the payments made to Buch were purely retirement benefits after her exit from the bank and they were neither salary nor employee stock options.

Prior to these allegations, Buch tenure at SEBI was all about bringing in quick reforms on operational issues by changing the format of consultation paper to bring in larger responses digitally. Being data savvy, the rationale of her decisions were democratic based on big data analysis derived from the responses received to the consultation papers.

Further she bifurcated the duties of the SEBI staff between operations and enforcement, which were done by the same persons earlier. Having worked for the private sector in the capital market domain space, Buch had a better understanding of the subject compared to officers from the administrative service in the past that reflected even in her orders as a whole-time director at SEBI before becoming the chairperson. As a whole time director at SEBI, her orders on adjudication issues were more directional to the capital market space, according to experts in the compliance space. She was also quick to revamp the old provisions of the 90s at SEBI.

Being tech and data savvy, Buch enhanced regulatory surveillance and detection of market manipulation, insider trading and fraud while also emphasizing on strengthening corporate governance by introducing stricter rules for independent directors and enhancing disclosures for related-party transactions.

To put in perspective, the annual report of the capital market regulator in the just concluded financial year revealed that the number of investigations related to insider trading jumped to 175 in 2023-24 from 85 in the preceding year while probes related to front running jumped over three times to 83 from 24 in the preceding year.

Transparency in mutual funds by implementing measures to protect retail investors along with tightening norms for initial public offers, particularly in the SME platforms were some of her other positive initiatives including confirmation of denial of any market rumours within 24 hours for the top 100 listed companies which will be extended to top 250 companies from December 1. However increased transparency and compliance with tightening regulations led to increased operational costs for the market participants and hence faced resistance from certain quarters. Born in 1966, Buch completed her primary education in Mumbai and graduated with specialization in Mathematics from Delhi and later obtained a management degree from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. In between, she got engaged to Dhawal Buch, a director at a consumer goods multinational at the age of eighteen and got married at the age of 21.

Besides ICICI Bank, Buch also worked as a lecturer at a college in England, worked at Greater Pacific Capital in Singapore and ICICI Securities as its CEO. She also worked as executive director on several private sector companies and as a consultant for New Development Bank (Brics Bank).

What now remains to be seen, is whether Buch, who survived the 26/11 terror attack when she along with her husband, was attending a meeting at Taj, be able to overcome the current ordeal. Keeping fingers crossed for the times to come.

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