Govt plans digital tracking of companies' waste, credit trades

The move will hold companies accountable for collecting and recycling the waste they generate, while closing enforcement gaps, curbing fake credits, and shifting extended producer responsibility (EPR) compliance to a transparent, real-time, market-linked system.

Under the plan, an online portal of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), under the aegis of environment, forest and climate change ministry, will serve as a comprehensive system to digitize the lifecycle of EPR management.

This includes registration of producers, importers and brand owners (PIBOs), tracking of waste generation and collection, compliance monitoring, and facilitating credit trading mechanisms. A centralized digital system is expected to enable real-time data monitoring and better coordination between regulators, recyclers, and producers.

EPR rules were notified in 2022, wherein the PIBOs using plastic packaging are legally responsible for collecting, recycling and reusing the plastic waste generated from their products. Instead of municipalities alone managing plastic waste, here the responsibility shifts partly to companies that bring plastic.

The registration module was launched in February, and the platform is expected to become fully operational within the next four months.

The initiative comes amid growing concerns over the management of plastic waste, electronic waste, and used batteries, wherein enforcement gaps and fragmented systems have posed challenges to effective implementation.

"The existing system was not effective in managing the full EPR lifecycle or tracking compliance digitally, as it is more manually. The new portal will enable end-to-end management of obligations, including registration, target setting, monitoring and reporting,” one of the officials said.

The portal will require all obligated entities as well as intermediaries such as recyclers and processors to register digitally.

An email query sent to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Central Pollution Control Board remains unanswered.

"The portal will initially cover five to six waste streams, where EPR compliance is mandatory, including plastic waste, e-waste, battery waste, used oil, and waste tyres. Additional categories such as scrap metals may be added later," said Shubhranshu Patnaik, partner and government & public services (G&PS) industry leader at Deloitte India.

“Companies will be able to track their annual obligations in real time and meet shortfalls through accredited recyclers or by purchasing credits,” Patnaik said. The system will significantly reduce paperwork and manual intervention, and it will enable real-time monitoring of compliance by regulators, he added.

“The proposed overhaul of the EPR portal under the 2022 framework is expected to eliminate intermediaries and directly benefit recyclers by improving transparency and access. The digital platform will enable direct linkage between producers, importers, brand owners, and registered recyclers,” said Deepak Rungta, managing director at Rungta Greentech Ltd. "This is likely to reduce the role of middlemen who currently aggregate credits or facilitate informal transactions in the EPR market."

The move is expected to curb malpractices such as fake documentation and double counting of recycling credits that have been a concern in the existing system. With end-to-end traceability and real-time tracking, only verified recycling activities will be eligible for EPR credit generation.

According to the official cited above, the government is moving towards a fully digital system to improve EPR implementation, simplify compliance, enhance transparency and enable a national marketplace for credit trading.

The officials said the platform will enable paperless and faster registration for producers, importers and brand owners obligated under EPR rules, significantly reducing administrative delays and paperwork. It will allow digital filing of compliance reports and annual returns, making it easier for companies to submit documentation and for regulators to monitor adherence to EPR obligations.

A key feature of the system is real-time tracking of EPR targets and performance, which will help authorities assess whether obligated entities are meeting their waste collection and recycling commitments under different waste categories.

The system is also expected to provide greater transparency and a detailed audit trail for regulators, allowing authorities to track transactions, compliance records and credit transfers more effectively.

The move comes as the government expands EPR coverage across multiple waste streams and seeks to strengthen monitoring and enforcement through technology-driven solutions.

“An online real-time mechanism helps identify the problem and its source quickly, allowing for effective monitoring,” environment activist Akash Vashishta said.

Environmentalists also pressed for a real-time carbon emissions dashboard to strengthen monitoring and transparency.

"Besides other pollutants, carbon emissions, including CO₂ and methane, are also one of the major contributors to global warming, so there should be a real-time dashboard to track them effectively,” said Debi Goenka, an environmentalist and executive trustee at the Mumbai-headquartered NGO, Conservation Action Trust.