High Obsolescence Level of E-Waste among Rural and Urban Household Consumers in Kerala: Key Facts

By : Shibulal A. L. , K. S. Chandrasekar

Page No: 303-312

Abstract
E-Waste is an emerging environmental problem in India and the rest of the world. It is a paradox of a sort as e-waste has both beneficial and harmful effects. The sudden growth of the IT and electronics industries, changing lifestyles of people, availability of low priced electronic gadgets, technological advancements, among others, have led to increased use of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) in India. The existing conditions are also instrumental in the state of Kerala becoming one of the fastest e-waste generating states in India. The total waste stream from obsolete EEE is normally generated from household and institutional consumers. A pilot study of scrap dealers of Kerala revealed that the majority of WEEE was generated by household consumers across rural and urban areas of the state. This is the right period to filter the major factors leading to the high obsolescence rate of this ‘new generation waste’ in Kerala. The study was conducted among 400 household consumers across Kerala. This descriptive study, which shows the awareness level of household consumers towards e-waste generation and handling, contributes considerably to research on the generation of electrical and electronic wastes (WEEE).

Authors :
Shibulal A. L.
Associate Professor & HoD, Mohandas Institute of Management, MCET, APJAK Technological University, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India.

K. S. Chandrasekar
Senior Professor & HoD, Institute of Management in Kerala, SBM&LS, University of Kerala, Kariyavattom campus, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.32381/PROD.2022.63.03.6