Plastic waste management (India)

The current policy environment demands effective and efficient implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) through one of the channels suggested by concerned authorities. The informal value chain of plastic waste is generating an informal economy but is making the current EPR models in India imbalanced because the waste that is in the informal value chain remains untapped and not reported. The study starts with understanding the current policy environment around EPR and plastic waste management and then assessing the current scenario of plastic waste management to identify issues through analysis of data collected by primary and secondary sources. The study ends with providing options for EPR implementation in an inclusive, effective, and efficient EPR through the engagement of informal waste workers such as raddiwalas, pithawalas, waste pickers, and wholesalers. The study paves the way for creating a win-win situation for the informal waste management systems as well as the formal waste management systems. The inclusion of an informal value chain by incentivizing its stakeholders brings organizational as well as financial efficiency to the formal waste management systems.