Entrepreneur Raj Kumar recognised the e-waste problem in 2010 while working in the IT sector.
In response to the lack of public awareness and environmental hazards posed by e-waste, Raj established his first recycling plant in Khushkhera (Alwar, Rajasthan) under ‘Deshwal E-Waste Recycler’.
In 2019-20, only 22.7% of the 10.14 lakh tonnes of e-waste generated in India was collected and recycled or disposed of, reported The Hindu Business Line.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change announced draft regulations in 2022 to replace the current E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016, with a target of collecting and recycling at least 60% of e-waste by 2023.
Gurugram-based Deshwal Waste Management (DWM) Private Limited, founded by Raj in 2013, is a leading recycler of e-waste, batteries, oil, and plastic waste in India.
DWM serves over 200 corporate clients, including Fortune 500 companies, and operates through both B2B and B2C models.
They have a state-of-the-art Reverse Logistics Management Services (RMLS) system to handle recycling requests from across the country.
“We are currently recycling 25 metric tonnes (MT) per day of e-waste at our Manesar facility,” says Raj. The recycling process includes segregation, dismantling, sorting, and extraction of ferrous and non-ferrous metals.
DWM can efficiently extract base metals like lead, copper, nickel, aluminium, and zinc, as well as higher base metals.
They can extract and recycle various categories of plastics defined by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the environment ministry.
DWM aims to develop a sustainable ecosystem by providing OEMs with extracted granules from category 1 plastics for manufacturing finished goods.
The company primarily channels the recycled metals to OEMs and contract manufacturers for further refining and production of finished products.
DWM also manages e-waste for residential welfare associations (RWAs) and uses CFL Recycler Machines for the safe collection and disposal of hazardous e-waste.