The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Uttarakhand State Council with its Centre of Excellence CESD (CII – ITC Center for Excellence and Sustainable Development) organised a day long training programme on waste management rules and their amendments at Haridwar on Tuesday.
The programme focused on the importance of waste management, various Acts and rules along with the amendments therein, being notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (MoEFCC) for better understanding of the compliance obligations required by the industry.
Satyavir Singh from Mahindra and Mahindra Limited, Haridwar while addressing the participants averred that industries at large nowadays are committed towards appropriate disposal of waste generated without impacting the environment. In addition to this, they also focus on how the waste can be converted to wealth and are also seeing this as a new business opportunity.
He apprised that Mahindra is striving for the same and is committed to ‘zero waste to landfill’ and ‘waste to wealth’ practices to reduce the impact of waste on the community.
Shikhar Jain, principal counsellor, CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development said that waste is a global issue. If it is not properly dealt with, it poses a threat to public health and the environment. Waste disposal is a growing issue linked directly to the way society produces and consumes. It concerns everyone. Waste management is one of the essential utility services in the 21st century, particularly in urban areas. Later during the day, Jain emphasised on the effective implementation of Water Act, 1974, Air Act, 1981, Environment Protection Act, 1986 and Waste Management Rules notified therein, online system for monitoring of emission/effluent, revised CEPI score and CREP.
Divya Aggarwal, counsellor at CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development, said that larger industries these days are cautious towards their waste disposal. Industry recognises to take into account the environmental impact of its operations as well as the health and safety of the workers and community in which they operate. She shared insights on strengthening of waste management in companies and corporate responsibilities for environmental protection. The training programme was attended by over 35 representatives from 15 companies.