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Rajya Sabha
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has initiated steps to prepare a Manual on assessing E-Waste in the country, for which the work has been awarded to a consultant.
Electronic waste is included under List-A and List-B of Schedule-3 of the Hazardous Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1989 as amended in 2000 and 2003. E-Waste is also regulated by the Basel Convention on the Control of Trans-Boundary Movement of Hazardous Waste and their Disposal. No country can export e-waste without written consent from the importing country. The import of this waste, therefore, requires specific permission of the Ministry of Environment & Forests. No such permission has been given to any authority or person by the Ministry till date for import of e-waste.
As per the Foreign Trade Policy 2004-2009, import of second hand computers is under the restricted category and their import requires an import license. Such second hand computers are allowed to be imported for use in educational institutions, NGOs and charitable organisations of the country. Import licenses are granted with the approval of an Inter-Ministerial Committee of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT). As per the available information, the quantity of second hand computers, etc., permitted for import so far being small, the same does not form major constituent of e-waste in the country.
This information was given by the Minister of State for Environment and Forests Shri Namo Narain Meena in a written reply to a question from Member of Parliament Shri K. Rama Mohan Rao in the Rajya Sabha today.
AKS/rs
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