At the first E-Waste Round Table organised by the Centre for Policy and Advocacy (CPGA) here on Saturday, scientists and environmentalists expressed their concern over the mounting e-waste and its hazardous effects on health as well as environment at large.

Dignitaries from several universities, engineering and technology institutes came under one roof to discuss on several measures need to be taken on the part of Government and other stakeholders to combat the issue.

Besides, professors from Germany, Goa and Haryana working on e-waste also joined the event through video conferencing.

Convening the discussion,  CPGA Chairman Tejeswar Parida said, “A very organized, systematic and scientific approach to the very critical issue of E-Waste and its management is being started from Odisha involving all stakeholders. We have invited scientists, researchers, academicians, national institutes, Government agencies, civil society organizations, MSME entrepreneurs and associations, environmentalists to start a mass movement against this manmade e-waste disaster due to electronic waste.”

Parida further stated that besides awareness drives, the outfit will take steps to build pressure on the State Government and the Centre to focus on reduce, recycle and reuse of electronic waste with effective management policies and strict implementation to avoid e-waste disaster.

Highlighting about presence of critical metals and engineering polymers in e-waste, Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (IMMT) Principal Scientist Dr Mamata Mohapatra informed that a group of CSIR-IMMT scientists and researchers are working on to develop cost effective recycling processes of different components of e-waste and spreading awareness.

Besides, some participants also suggested that the Government should patronize private companies taking interest in e-waste recycling.

Secretary General of OASME Satwiki Swain and OIA Chairman Abani Kanungo also spoke on the ocassion.