Universities and Colleges Must Raise Awareness on Health Hazards of E-Waste: UGC
UGC has urged the universities to educate the students about health hazards caused by e-waste. The technologies involved in recycling e-waste, particularly in the unorganised sector will have an adverse impact on the people’s health and environment.
The University Grants Commission (UGC) has directed all the universities and colleges to educate students on health hazards or ill effects of thee-waste (end-to-life products). As per UGC, universities and colleges will have to come up with a sustained mechanism to create awareness with an aim to mitigate the adverse impact of e-waste on the health and environment. In most cases, the technologies involved in recycling e-waste, particularly in the unorganised sector will have an adverse impact on the people’s health and environment. Therefore, an awareness programme must be organised by higher learning institutes to reduce the adverse impact of e-waste, explained UGC.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology was the first to initiate an awareness campaign on the health hazards of e-waste in 2015. The awareness programme of the ministry was named as ‘Awareness Programme on Environmental Hazards of Electronic Waste’, and the same was initiated through STPI (Software Technology Parks of India).
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The awareness campaign on ill effects of e-waste provides printed material, short films, content material, tools, and training for organising awareness programme in higher learning institutes and STPI. The awareness campaign also includes an inventory study of quantum e-waste. The content regarding the same is available on the official website of the GREENE of Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
UGC has urged all the higher learning institutes to utilise the content available for creating awareness among the students about the ill effects of e-waste, safe recycling and best practices associated with it and rules & regulations. UGC has sent the link of the official website to access the content in the letter issued to Vice Chancellors of all the universities. The VCs must further convey the message to affiliated colleges, UGC stated.
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