Bring law to prevent entry of child labour into e-waste business, says Assocham

New Delhi: Industry body Assocham on Wednesday said the government should formulate an effective legislation to prevent entry of child labour into the e-waste business.

"Many workers (in this business) are children, who are unaware of the hazards. By the time they reach 35 to 40 years of age, they're incapable of working," Assocham said in a statement.

Majority of the workers engaged in various e-waste activities are suffering from respiratory ailments such as breathing difficulties and coughing due to inadequate safeguards at workshops, it added.

Children are particularly vulnerable to lead poisoning more than adults because they absorb more lead and due to this their nervous system and blood gets affected.

The chamber said that there is a "need to bring out an effective legislation to prevent entry of child labour into its (e-waste) collection, segregation and distribution".

It said among the eight largest e-waste generating states, Maharashtra ranks first, followed by Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka and West Bengal.

"About 76 per cent of e-waste workers in India suffer from respiratory ailments like breathing difficulties who all are engaged in various e-waste activities due to improper safeguards and dismantling workshops," it said.

However, it has not mentioned the number of people engaged in such activities. For the recycling of e-waste, India heavily depends on the unorganised sector as only a handful of organized e-waste recycling facilities are available, it said.

"Over 95 per cent of the e-waste is treated and processed in the majority of urban slums of the country, where untrained workers carry out the dangerous procedures without personal protective equipment, which are detrimental not only to their health but also to the environment," it added.

E-waste includes discarded computer monitors, motherboards, cathode ray tubes, printed circuit board, mobile phones, chargers, compact disc, headphones, televisions, air conditioners and refrigerators.

"There is an urgent need to plan a preventive strategy in relation to health hazards of e-waste handling among these workers in India," it said.