e-waste collection turns a noble mission

e-waste, considered a menace to the nature and society alike, may soon assume life-saving qualities if a novel project introduced by Piravom municipality gets adopted across the State.

The project, which aims at utilising the proceeds from the sale of e-waste for charity, has impressed the Clean Kerala Company (CKC) that it is all set to place a proposal before the Local Self-Government Department recommending it as a model project worth implementing across the State.

The CKC, a government-promoted company engaged in the collection and disposal of e-waste, has been buying e-waste from educational institutions at a special rate of Rs.25 per kilogram, the proceeds from which are being used by individual institutions for purposes of their choice.

“Instead, we decided to bring together 22 schools within our limits and club together their revenue for the larger good of the humanity. The first lot of e-waste collected under the project with the slogan ‘save nature, save lives, would be handed over to the CKC on July 15,” Sabu K. Jacob, municipal chairman, told

The Hindu .

Project inaugurated

Jose K. Mani, MP, inaugurated the project on Monday and Kabeer B. Haroon, managing director of CKC, received e-waste as token from the leader of St. Joseph’s School.

The immediate proceeds would go to a ninth standard student who needs kidney transplantation, a 32-year-old mother of three who needs lever transplantation, a cancer patient and a 30-year-old woman casual labourer in need for a major surgery after suffering a fall; all of whom are from very poor families.

Many possibilities

Kabeer B. Haroon, managing director of CKC, said that even assuming that every household had at least an unused television, which weighs about 40 kilogram, a school with 500 students would account for 2,000 kilogram of e-waste not to mention the many useless mobile phones, refrigerators, CFLs and much more.

“The combined revenues could be used for a lot of charity initiatives, including constructing houses for homeless students,” said Mr. Haroon.