According to World Health Organization website:
The ‘Health Topics’ section shows the keen attention of the World Health Organization towards the children and the environment that are affected due to the usage of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE). Since there is rise in the consumption of electronic goods there is also enormous electronic waste that is generated and which is equally growing enormously. The major source of income in the informal sector is through segregation and recycling of the e-waste which has components of copper, gold and other valuable metals. A number of health hazards can be a result of hazardous and toxic components rather than the minimum collection of valuable components that are segregated and recycled by the vulnerable group of the society.
The intake of contaminated air, water and food can result into various health issues. The central nervous system, the digestive or immunity system and the reproductive system can be affected due to such exposure. Such risky exposures of childhood can lead to tremendous and significant hormonal changes during the growth stage of a child. It is very essential to keep health of the workers in mind when they are hired to collect, segregate and recycle the electronic waste. The safety of the workers should be one’s priority.
Thus, we need to consider this issue of electronic waste as an issue requiring serious and immediate action from our end. It is the responsibility of each and everyone of us who use electronics to know that one day the products would turn into scrap and it would be recycled by someone else. The toxic components can have impact over the health of the one’s who recycle. So, lets make the change for a better tomorrow. This issue is not an issue restricted to India only but every country needs to contribute in some form or the other to sustainably use the resources that are available to us all.
India is a party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC in short) which was adopted in the year 1992 and it came into force in the year 1994. It aims to protect the environment and curb the climatic changes by taking various precautionary measures. According to the official website of UNFCCC, the climate action section of the website mentions about India and the electronic waste which is being taken up as a serious issue by various non-governmental organizations by helping the environment to still retain its beauty.
The world is advancing and at the same time we need to consider the pollution and the effect this advancement has on the environment. Its time to sit back and think how can we contribute towards our environment. India is diverse not just in culture, customs or traditions but also in terms of nature. We find mountains, deserts, forests and all forms of natural beauty within our country. It is our responsibility to preserve it and to utilise the resources efficiently and effectively.
The Indian cities are helped in keeping clean because of the informal waste pickers who contribute largely from collecting of the e-waste to its recycling. There are also certain companies that are pro-active when it comes to handling electronic waste. In India the consumption of electronics is increasing and especially after the lockdown many of them had to use better versions of electronics to get access to the best of connectivity in terms of education, career etc. It is surely our duty to take care of the electronic waste aspect as well.
When schools, colleges, offices and various organizations take up this issue seriously and make the people around them aware of what happens in the society; there is a social responsibility that every citizen adheres to in terms of electronic waste management. If we act today then we can have a better future in terms of health, climate, jobs etc. The coming generation can benefit through the sustainable development that we would be stepping towards. We at times enjoy the shade of a tree which was planted by someone else years ago. Nature has its own way of giving us the best. We too need to give back our best to it.
According to the International Labour Organization website:
In the Newsroom section of the website, it shows that in a press release dated 17th April, 2019 there was an urgent action call to manage the flood of toxic electronic waste that was produced around the world in-order to convert it into a valuable source of decent work. During the International Labour Organization meeting in Geneva of the representatives of the Governments along with the organizations of workers and employers there was an agreement by the Governments to- “increase and promote investments in waste management infrastructure and systems at all levels, as appropriate, to manage the rapidly growing flows of e-waste in ways that advance decent work.”
In India as well, we have many people who are engaged in the unorganized sector. This unorganized sector generates huge employment opportunity to the needy. Electronic waste can be handled well if we make the people aware on what is this electronic waste and how should it be discarded and what’s next after it is discarded. The electronic scrap business is one of the flourishing businesses all over the world. Since India has a huge labour force there requires a keen attention towards this sector and the various guidelines that have to be followed in-order to protect the labour force from being exploited or being affected by any diseases due to the poor working conditions or lack of safety measures.
Generally, it is the vulnerable group of people who are engaged in such life risking activities, hence there is a need for the State to provide better infrastructure and facilities to such workers. The workers also need to be made aware of the repercussions that they would face while handling, segregating and recycling such waste. Thus, not just in India but internationally as well there can be a way out to tackle e-waste in such manner that much harm is not caused to the ecosystem.