Waste Management Conclave 2016 hosted by Godrej Good & Green

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – Changing Need of Waste Management

With the commitment to create an inclusive and greener India, Godrej Group today hosted itsThird Annual Good & Green Conclave on Waste Management. As a step towards addressing some of the big issues impacting the planet, this year’s conclave brought eminent leaders and experts together to deliberate and share their views on sustainable waste management practices.

Mr. Jamshyd Godrej, Chairman and Managing Director, Godrej & Boyce Mfg Co Ltd and Mr. Nadir Godrej, Managing Director, Godrej Industries Ltd inaugurated the event with a welcome speech. It was followed by a series of panel discussions by industry experts on the changing needs of waste management. One of the many interesting perspectives shared during the conclave was about how localised waste management can be linked to wealth creation.

Mr. Jamshyd Godrej mentioned, “At Godrej, we have always been concerned towards maintaining the right balance between environment and industry. Our Good & Green vision helps us to focus on greener India, hence a part of our sustainability plan involves achieving zero waste. It has always been our endeavour to manage the waste produced by our business and recycle them. Our teams are working together to constantly come up with innovative processes for higher levels of sustainable productivity.” He further added, “It is important that Indian industry should focus on adopting a Green purchase policy and cleaner production technologies.”

Putting forward his heartfelt opinion, Mr. Nadir Godrej said, “As a group, our vision is to achieve zero waste to landfill by 2020. Towards our vision of building a greener India, we are now exploring ways to further this commitment through ‘shared value’ initiatives that create both social and business benefits. The third annual Good and Green conclave on Waste Management is an effort to contribute meaningfully to the communities that we are a part of. We are glad that the conclave brought together renowned leaders and experts to share their experiences and discuss sustainable pathways for the future.”

The conclave, attended by 250   people, witnessed participation from stalwarts of the industry such as Vivek Agarwal, Chairman, ICWM, Anirban Ghosh, Vice President – Strategic Planning and New Business Development, Mahindra & Mahindra, Mukul Rastogi, Vice President, ITC and Chetan Zaveri, Vice President, IL & FS and and Deeksha Vats, Sr.Vice President – Sustainability, Aditya Birla and Ms Bharati Chaturvedi, Founder Chintan,, Ms Jyoti Mhapsekar, President, Sree Mukti Sanghatana from Social sector.

Urban India is unfortunately the world’s third-largest garbage generator with more than 45 million tonnes, or three million trucks worth, of garbage remaining untreated and disposed improperly.

It is a matter of extreme concern that only 68 per cent of the garbage generated in the country is collected, of which only 28 per cent is treated by the municipal authorities. If this issue is not tackled efficiently, total waste generation is projected to be 165 million tonnes by 2031 and 436 million tonnes by 2050.

Various initiatives such as Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and the revised Solid Waste Management Rules are small steps towards achieving effective waste management. However, this could only happen when waste management & recycling activities are transformed into a “National Movement” by involving all the stakeholders.