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Is the plastic industry trying to influence green policies?

The Backbone of India’s Plastic Recycling

  • Over 70% of plastic recycled in India is collected and processed by informal workers — ragpickers, sorters, grassroots recyclers.
  • These workers operate without protective gear, legal recognition, or social security, facing toxic exposure and deep vulnerability.
  • Despite their critical role, they remain excluded from policy frameworks and municipal contracts.

Relevance : GS 3(Environment and Ecology)

Steps Toward Formal Integration

  • National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) Scheme (2024):
    • Seeks to integrate waste-pickers and sanitation workers into formal systems.
    • Offers health insurance (Ayushman Bharat), safety equipment, and access to social security schemes.
    • As of May 2025, over 80,000 workers profiled under the scheme by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.
  • Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 (Amended 2022):
    • Enforces Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) — obligates manufacturers to manage and recover plastic waste.
    • Pushes for inclusive models that recognize the role of informal workers in collection and segregation.

Challenges Persist

  • Implementation gaps remain in integrating informal workers into city-level contracts and supply chains.
  • Lack of identity documents and low digital literacy prevent full access to formal entitlements.
  • Many workers continue to operate under unsafe, exploitative conditions, without union protection or labour rights.

Global Industry Tactics: Parallels with Tobacco

  • Plastic industry, like tobacco, shifts blame to consumers while downplaying systemic harms.
    • Promoted recycling from the 1980s despite knowing it’s economically impractical at scale.
    • Funded misleading campaigns to divert scrutiny from corporate responsibility.
  • Greenwashing through fake labels (“biodegradable,” “compostable”) misleads consumers and weakens regulation.
  • Exploits weaker regulations in Global South as Global North tightens plastic laws.

Vulnerability of the Global South

  • Plastic consumption in Asia projected to triple by 2060, compared to just 15% growth in Europe (OECD, 2022).
  • Low- and middle-income countries like India face the double burden of rising plastic imports and poor waste infrastructure.
  • Informal sector workers bear the brunt of this unsustainable growth without adequate safeguards.

The Way Forward

  • Recognize and register waste pickers under urban local bodies and waste management policies.
  • Promote worker-owned cooperatives and micro-enterprises in formal waste contracts.
  • Strengthen social protection, workplace safety, and income security.
  • Hold producers accountable through strict enforcement of EPR norms and transparent plastic reporting.

July 2025
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