Recycling Cars/Bikes In India

[arunmur]

Hi all,
Recently i came across this video which made be post this topic. As an introduction its an earth day initiative video on car recycling happening in the US. There is video in that link that gives us a statistics and techinicalities in making recyclable cars.
Earth Day 2008: Recyclable Cars

There are certain points that caught my attention.
Raising steel price. We have all seen our beloved machine prices raised many times in last 2-3 years. Each time the numbers range in Rs.5000-Rs.40000. The most common reason they give is raising input prices. Now even without that video we can say non availability of raw materials or low capacity in processing of the raw materials can easily be over come by recycling our waste cars.

1) Its not 1990's any more, many people have started to afford personal cars from the mid 90's here to we sell not in millions but our numbers are not too far. But as i understand it, we need millions of expiring cars to make a profittable recycling car business. So the question is are cars produced in India recycled ever? If not what happens to them? If yes then where you know any place where this happens?

2) Its common that India even 1970's cars are commonly used for every day transport. Government never managed to ban trucks over 15 years of age and the tax for personal vehicles over 15 years is often defaulted like emission norms and insurance. When do you think our cars must expire? Surely people do not want it off road, but how about limiting mileage of such cars yearly coupled with an exception? Any other solution that can be worked out?

3) Always heard that most of the E-waste generated in the US ends up here or in China, How about other waste imported? Apart from the WTC junk.

[snaronikar]

Leave alone recycling of cars/bikes...In India, people does not even think of throwing their toys even if it is broken. I personally have seen in many places. This system is good only in US and some European countries.

[arunmur]

Its sad, cause we definitely have lots of recyclable cars. Cars sold in early times were just 800's and omnis which have simpler parts and can be recycled easily as compared to American cars sold in 90's are mostly luxury cars by our standard. And by the time big cars started comming to India, thanks to gloablization, most of our cars have more than 80% recyclable parts.

Infact i have seen Skoda adds saying that their car is 95% recylable. Whats the use of the ad if they are not recycling?

About bikes, we are still far from standards, but i won't be shocked if they do considerable amount of recycling.

[khanak]

India not recycling? Are you kidding me?

What do you'll think happens in the Chor Bazaars and scrapyards of our country? The only difference is that it is still not looked upon as a fashionable or "cool" thing to do. We have been recycling long before it was "in".

Besides cars even other things like plastics, bottles and cans get recycled in India. Why do you think you are made to return the glass bottle after drinking a Pepsi? A few years ago the BMC has come out with a rule where they only accept bio degradable waste and things like paper and bottles need to be recycled. We usually give the recyclable waste to the kachrawala without knowing that it gets recycled. Even when some of us selfishly throw plastic bottles onto the street, someone often comes around with a sack on his or her back picking up things that can be recycled hoping to make a buck or two by selling it.

[khanak]

Has anyone noticed how so many people use empty booze bottles to store water in the fridge?

[ajmat]

Last year, I was asked to stand in and give a talk about e-waste on behalf of my company, at a conference on E-Waste at the Institute of Chemical Engineers.

I gave my piece about the doom and how faster product innovation means things are discarded faster hence need to ensure recyclability, others gave their message of doom.

Then the Reliance Plastics guy stands up and gives clear figures showing that a lot of plastics in India are recycled, only it is in a disorganised and unsafe manner and that the messages of doom are all not what they seems to be.

Im my hotel in the US, the amount of plastics, I just at breakfast is mortifying, the cereal bowl, the plate (which is actually so nice that I would have washed and reused had I been at home), cutlery, and the coffee cups. That too you chuck in a bin which is not segregated. Criminal

Now going back to cars..

Now to do something about those bags

[snaronikar]

@ Khanak: We are discussing about the recycling of cars/bikes and not plastic cans / other kind of bottles. In India whenever we get to hear that Govt want to make a rule of scrapping the vehicles that is >15 years old, there will be strike called by transporters and govt will always give into their demands.

Yes, there might be some amount of recycling going on in bikes/cars category but not to the extent of US/European countries. Its still a long way to go.

[khanak]

Originally Posted by snaronikar

@ Khanak: We are discussing about the recycling of cars/bikes and not plastic cans / other kind of bottles. In India whenever we get to hear that Govt want to make a rule of scrapping the vehicles that is >15 years old, there will be strike called by transporters and govt will always give into their demands.

Yes, there might be some amount of recycling going on in bikes/cars category but not to the extent of US/European countries. Its still a long way to go.

I was just trying to point out how recycling is very much prevalent in India without a lot of us knowing about it. Like I mentioned in my previous post, cars too are being recyled by your neighbourhood bhangarwalla. Cars in India arent just crushed like in the US, they are strippped. A chap comes along with a chissel and takes out every usable part and recycles the metal. Karl had posted something about his visit to Chor Bazaar where a Fiat was completely stripped and its parts taken to be recycled within a matter of 10 mins.

[arunmur]

On an average i think cars in India run for about 20 years after a lot ownership transfers and heart transplants. And in the last the car spends lot of time sitting at some body's house who wishes to use it only when he plans to meet his relatives. Some cars do live for about 30-40 years, before restoration and making it a classic.

I do see a lot of cars rusting away to glory being parked in some not so seen spaces(in my area there are two, i see daily an old amby and another 1980's MB E-240). If you get a bit off the main road you will see many Contessa's and Dolphins without any thing but body. The car other parts taken off and the unusable lying a waste around. Much like the plastic tea/coffee cups we use and throw at road side. If you go to the police grounds where they keep recovered cars, you will see a lot more junk. I am not sure on how many cars actually get recycled though lot of car's par is reused. I know initially the numbers were really small and some cars were going to the junk yards(yeah i have seen paper wallah accepting mopeds and junk cars in our area ). Must be this is what the Reliance guy was pointing out by saying that we do quite a bit of recycling but not in an official/safe way.

Any idea on the amount of junked cars recycled ? Any organised company in this sector?

[snaronikar]

Originally Posted by arunmur

Any idea on the amount of junked cars recycled ? Any organised company in this sector?

Do you have an idea of junking your car/bike?

[arunmur]

You read it, there is an old amby and a MB rusting outside there.

Getting real, its a just for infomration. I am just trying to imagine when we will be hit by a famine of steel becasue of no recyling plants for cars and low extraction capacity of steel locally, so that FM will probably warn the companies about increase in steel prices. The day when imported car will be cheaper than locally produced cars. The day when the Alto will cost as much as the current Swift. And NANO manufactured some place else.