The NITI Aayog launched three thematic reports on enhancing the circular economy in End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs), waste tyres, e-waste, and lithium-ion batteries at the International Material Recycling Conference organised by the Material Recycling Association of India in Jaipur.

These reports highlight the growing waste challenge arising from rapid urbanisation, expansion of electric vehicles, and increasing digitalisation, and propose policy pathways to strengthen India’s circular economy ecosystem.

Key Highlights of NITI Aayog Reports

1. End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs)

Rapid urbanisation and increasing vehicle ownership are leading to a sharp rise in ageing vehicles in India. The growth of electric vehicles (EVs) is further expected to accelerate the generation of ELVs in the coming years.

• EV sales increased from 50,000 in 2016 to about 2.08 million in 2024, and the government aims to achieve 30% EV share in total vehicle sales by 2030.

• The number of End-of-Life Vehicles is projected to increase from 23 million in 2025 to around 50 million by 2030.

• However, the circular economy potential is limited due to insufficient Automated Testing Stations (ATS) and Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facilities (RVSFs).

• The weak financial viability of scrappage facilities, procedural delays, and low consumer awareness continue to encourage informal dismantling of vehicles.

2. Circular Economy of Waste Tyres

Increasing vehicle ownership and EV adoption are also driving a surge in End-of-Life Tyres (ELTs).

• The tyre recycling ecosystem remains fragmented and largely dominated by informal recyclers.

• There is poor traceability and absence of strong quality standards in tyre recycling.

• High-value recycling opportunities, such as production of Recovered Carbon Black (rCB) and tyre retreading, remain underutilised.

• Much of the tyre waste is downcycled into low-value products, resulting in lost economic opportunities and missed potential for import substitution and green job creation.

3. E-Waste and Lithium-Ion Batteries

The rapid expansion of digital technologies and clean energy systems is generating large quantities of electronic waste and lithium-ion battery waste.

• India’s e-waste generation is expected to increase from 6.19 million metric tonnes (MMT) in 2024 to about 14 MMT by 2030.

• Demand for lithium-ion batteries is projected to grow from 29 GWh in 2025 to 248 GWh by 2035, mainly due to EV adoption and energy storage requirements.

• Recycling activities are largely informal and involve unsafe processes, which create environmental pollution and health risks.

• The current Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework covers only a limited number of metals, and weak monitoring enables fake recyclers and fraudulent certifications.

• Inefficient recycling increases India’s dependence on imported critical minerals, affecting long-term resource security.

Circular Economy: Concept

A Circular Economy is an economic model aimed at minimising waste and maximising the reuse of resources. Unlike the linear economy (take–make–dispose), it focuses on extending the lifecycle of materials.

The circular economy is based on the 6R principles:

• Reduce

• Reuse

• Recycle

• Refurbish

• Recover

• Repair

This approach ensures efficient resource use, reduced waste generation, and sustainable production systems.

Importance of Circular Economy for India

1. Resource Constraints

India has 18% of the global population but only about 7% of mineral resources and around 4% of freshwater resources. Therefore, a linear consumption model is economically unsustainable, and circular practices can reduce dependence on imported raw materials.

2. Rapid Growth of Waste

India generates around 1.68 lakh tonnes of municipal solid waste per day, which may reach 436 million tonnes annually by 2050 if current trends continue.

3. Low Waste Processing Levels

Only 55–60% of waste is processed, while the rest becomes residual waste that is dumped or landfilled, resulting in the loss of valuable recyclable materials.

4. Land and Urban Challenges

India has over 2,100 dumpsites occupying more than 10,000 hectares of urban land, which could be reclaimed through circular waste management practices.

5. Climate Change Impact

Greenhouse gas emissions from municipal waste are projected to reach around 41 million tonnes of CO? equivalent by 2030, largely due to methane emissions from landfills.

6. Employment Generation

Circular economy activities such as recycling, repair services, and bio-methanation can generate significant employment opportunities, particularly in the informal sector.

India’s Initiatives Supporting Circular Economy

India has undertaken several initiatives to promote circular economic practices, including:

• Swachh Bharat Mission

• Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016

• Plastic Waste Management Rules 2022

• Ban on Single-Use Plastics

• Swachh Survekshan

• E-Waste Management Rules 2022

• Mission LiFE

India is also a member of the Global Alliance on Circular Economy and Resource Efficiency (GACERE), which promotes global cooperation for circular economic practices.

Measures to Strengthen Circular Economy in Mobility

1. End-of-Life Vehicles

• Expand Automated Testing Stations and Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facilities across the country.

• Link vehicle deregistration with a valid Certificate of Deposit (CoD) to ensure vehicles are scrapped in authorised facilities.

• Integrate informal dismantlers into the formal sector through training and regulatory support.

2. Waste Tyres

• Restrict the use of Tyre Pyrolysis Oil (TPO) to approved industrial or refinery uses.

• Establish national standards for recovered Carbon Black and TPO.

• Formalise informal recyclers through financial assistance and simplified registration mechanisms.

3. E-Waste and Lithium-Ion Batteries

• Expand Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) to include additional high-value and critical minerals.

• Update Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) regulations for lithium-ion battery composition and recycling standards.

• Develop modern shared recycling facilities and strengthen collection systems through urban local bodies and PPP models.

Conclusion

The reports by NITI Aayog highlight that India’s waste challenge is not merely a sanitation issue but also a resource security, climate, and economic concern. By adopting a robust circular economy framework, India can transform waste into a valuable resource, generate green employment, reduce import dependence, and strengthen environmental sustainability, thereby aligning its development strategy with global sustainability goals.

Circular Economy

As part of its initiative to promote sustainability, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) initiated a campaign to develop an inclusive circular economy.

Important aspects of the campaign:

• To create a sustainable paradigm for plastic waste management in India, the project is an expansion of an already-existing cooperation under UNDP's flagship Plastic Waste Management Programme.

Managing plastic trash from beginning to finish by encouraging:

• Waste separation at the source
• Gathering of the separated garbage
• Establish Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) to recycle various types of plastic waste.
• Collaboration with the private sector
• Additionally, Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) would aid in enhancing urban local bodies' abilities to adopt MRFs or Swachhata Kendra
• Collaborations: Municipalities, businesses, Safai Saathis, and the general public are working together on the project to create cleaner, greener cities.
• 100,000 families will be impacted by the project, which aims to end segregation at its source.

What is circular economy?

• Waste management in India is thought to have a $15 billion market potential.
• 25% of India's total trash production consists of recyclable dry waste components.
• This recyclable garbage can be used as a source of raw materials after being improperly collected and deposited into landfills. It can be a very lucrative source of cash generation if correctly separated out and processed further.
• An economic system called a "circular economy," also referred to as "circularity," handles problems like pollution, waste, biodiversity loss, and climate change.
• The 3 R's (Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle) and material refurbishing, recovery, and repair are prioritised in a circular economy.
• The circular economy so aims to increase production through resource usage that is more efficient and hence has a minimal impact on the environment.
• All facets of manufacturing, consumption, and design are built on sustainability.

What Advantages Does the Circular Economy Offer?

• Environmental defence by cutting back on emissions, utilising less resources, and producing less waste.
• Promoting business models that use recycled waste from the neighbourhood as a source of raw materials has advantages for the local economy.
• Encourages the creation of a fresh, innovative, and cutting-edge industrial model that boosts the economy and creates jobs.
• According to NITI Aayog, the circular economy has the potential to create 1.4 crore jobs and lakhs of new enterprises over the course of the next five to seven years.
• Reduces the need for imported raw materials, promoting the autonomous utilisation of resources.
• Potential for Greater Economic Growth: According to the UNCTAD, India may embrace circular concepts in only three industries—cities and construction, food and agriculture, and transportation and vehicle manufacturing—to create $200+ billion in new economic value by 2030 and $600+ billion by 2050.
• Reduced Negative Externalities: Customers will also receive products that are more creative and durable, improving their quality of life and allowing them to accumulate savings over time.

Conclusion

• The circular economy is a viable alternative to the linear economy. By maximizing the value of resources throughout the product life cycles of the items that include them, adverse consequences on the environment, the economy, and society associated with product life cycles can be reduced.
• Because of this, the circular economy offers a straightforward answer that meets current policy goals. The circular economy's contribution to the world economy has a lot of space to increase.

Circular Economy

• It is an economic system aimed at eliminating waste; and the continual use of resources.
• It is a system of resource utilization where reduction, reuse and recycling of elements prevail.
• Circular systems create a closed system, minimizing the use of resource input and the creation of waste, pollution and emissions.
• It is an alternative to a traditional linear economy.
• This linear economy is modelled on the take-make-waste industrial model (make, use, dispose of).
• Sustainable Development Goal 12 → responsible consumption and production→ requires changing the linear production model and shifting towards a circular economy.