What if India’s waste could power its growth? Bhupender Yadav makes the circular economy pitch

India is seeking to make economic growth more resource-efficient and resilient by expanding recycling infrastructure, strengthening markets for recycled materials and bringing more producers into a regulatory framework for waste management, Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav said on Tuesday.

Addressing the inaugural session of the 10th World Circular Economy Forum (WCEF 2026) in Gandhinagar, Yadav said circularity should be viewed not simply as an environmental policy but as a way to improve the quality and sustainability of economic growth.

"The choice before us is not between growth and the environment. The real opportunity is to make growth itself more resource efficient, more resilient and more sustainable, and this is precisely what WCE provides," he said.


Yadav said India has made progress in expanding recycling capacity, encouraging new recycling technologies, developing markets for recycled materials and promoting eco-design and circular procurement. He said the success of a circular economy should not be measured only by the quantity of waste recycled, but by the amount of economic value preserved.

"The true measure of a circular economy will not be how much waste is recycled, but how little value we allow to be wasted," he said.

India expands regulatory framework for waste and recycling

The government's circular economy strategy is being built around regulatory reforms and digital compliance systems covering multiple waste streams, Yadav said.

Over recent years, India has strengthened its waste-management framework under the Environment Protection Act, 1986, with rules covering plastic waste, battery waste, e-waste, waste tyres, used oil, end-of-life vehicles, construction and demolition waste, non-ferrous scrap metal and solid waste.

"Our objective is clear - waste should no longer be seen as the end of a product's journey but as the beginning of another resource cycle. One of the most transformative reforms has been the introduction of extended producer responsibility (EPR)," he said.

The EPR framework shifts responsibility beyond conventional regulation by requiring producers, importers and brand owners to ensure environmentally sound management of products at the end of their life.

As of August, more than 83,000 producers and 4,802 recyclers were registered under the EPR framework, Yadav said. Nearly 482.24 lakh metric tonnes of waste had been processed across regulated waste streams, while more than 422 lakh metric tonnes were covered through EPR certificate generation.

He said the figures represented more than regulatory compliance.

"They represent materials recovered, resources conserved, technology deployed and livelihood created," Yadav said.

From recycling to consumption

Yadav said regulation alone would not be enough to establish a circular economy, arguing that changes in consumption patterns were equally important.

"A circular economy cannot be built only at the recycling plant; it must begin at the marketplace, continue at our homes, and ultimately become a habit in our daily life," he said.

He linked this approach to Mission LiFE, introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which promotes more deliberate and mindful use of resources rather than wasteful consumption.

Yadav also framed circularity as an extension of practices that have long existed in India, including repairing, reusing and recovering materials rather than discarding them.

"For India, circularity is not a new destination; it is a new way of looking at old wisdom. We are not merely adopting a new economic model, we are modernising values that have served our society for generations," he said.

He cited neighbourhood trades such as cobblers, tailors, watch mechanics and cycle repairers as examples of traditional systems that kept products in use for longer.

India steps up global circular economy cooperation

Yadav said circularity requires cooperation across countries and industries, with knowledge, technology and finance needed to move the transition beyond individual sectors.

India's international efforts include cooperation with the European Union on resource efficiency and circular economy, identified as areas of cooperation in the India-EU joint declaration of July 2020.

During India's G20 presidency, the country also launched a resource-efficiency and circular-economy industry coalition aimed at encouraging industrial action and collaboration.

India's cooperation with Germany through the joint working group for waste and circular economy and the Indo-German Environment Forum has focused on practical solutions, Yadav said.

(With inputs from PTI)