Aafrin Kidwai 
Moderated by Ms Bineesha P, Member- ECC, Office of the PSA, GoI and Executive Director, IIWM, Session 1 on Day 2 of the CII’s Virtual Waste to Worth Conference saw founders of various start-ups sharing their innovative solutions or technologies for sustainable waste management. Opportunities to develop the ecosystem for start-ups in WM in India and abroad were also discussed.
Ms Bineesha began the session by underlining the massive opportunity that currently exists for waste entrepreneurs in India. “Our country needs disruptive technologies to bring a visible change in the waste sector. There are 3723 ULBs and 2.4 lakh gram panchayats in our country yet there are such few waste management companies. While there are a few large WM companies with a turnover of over Rs 100 crore turnover, there are less than 100 MSMEs. India has emerged as the third largest start-up ecosystem in the world and 51 new unicorns are being added to the list each month. Yet, there is no start-up from the WM sector,” Ms Bineesha rued.
Listing some of the challenges facing India’s waste start-ups, Ms Bineesha said, “There is a lack of supportive ecosystem due to a lack of targeted investments. There is a change however and development organisations are trying to promote start-ups. Traditional banks and angel investors, however, are still hesitant.”
Another challenge is the absence of an institutionalised supply chain. “If we have to meet the SDG targets and create circularity and resource efficiency, we need a solid institutional framework that interlinks the waste supply chain – from collection to disposal. Reliable, evidence-based data at every stage of the waste flow is also critical though currently lacking in the sector,” Ms Bineesha said.
Here are some highlights from the session:
- Mr Rashid K – Co-Founder & Director, Genrobotic Innovations
Sharing information on his company’s flagship product, Bandicoot, Mr Rashid said their goal is to create robotic solutions using bio-mimic technology that can help scavengers in cleaning manholes with zero manual intervention. “We want to rehabilitate these workers and elevate them to the role of robot operators. Nearly a 100 robots are in operation and Bandicoot version 2.0 is operational. We are helping them upskill and providing them rehabilitation and supporting them in their struggle to live a dignified life.”
- Mr Jitesh Dadlani – Founder & CTO, Ishitva Robotic Systems Pvt Ltd
Ahmedabad-based Mr Dadlani explained how his patented high-speed AI-powered waste sorters segregate inorganic waste into its various categories including plastics, paper, metals, glass, etc or value recovery. Describing their product as transformational for MRFs, Mr Dadlani said technologies like IRS can also help bridge data gaps in the sector.
- Oliver Borek – Chief Commercial Officer, Mura Technology
Mr Borek described Mura’s proprietary technology, HydroPRS, an advanced recycling process able to convert end-of-life plastics back into the chemical and oils from which they were made, for use in the petrochemical industry in the production of new plastic and other materials. This broadens the scope of recyclable plastic materials, and helps to create a circular economy for plastic. The process uses supercritical water, heat and pressure via hydrothermal liquefaction to break long-chain hydrocarbons, donating hydrogen to produce shorter-chain, stable hydrocarbon products.
- Prof Srikanth Mutnuri – Founder, BacTreat Environmental Solutions
Prof Mutnuri’s discussed BacTreat’s unique technology for resource recovery from waste water, septage and septic tanks. Based in Goa, BacTreat promotes a decentralized approach to wastewater treatment and faecal sludge management plant in order to recover optimal nutrients. Septage solids are processed in a two-step process namely Lactic acid fermentation followed by Vermicomposting to prepare a type of compost called as Terra Preta. BacTreat also provides solution for household waste water treatment.
Noting that wastewater treatment has seen progress in India over the last few years, Ms Bineesha lauded how BES’ technology was based on natural processes.
- Mr D C Sekhar – Founder Director, AlphaMERS Ltd
In the backdrop of strict SUP regulations, Mr Sekhar, a former Merchant Navy officer, said how AlphaMERS Ltd has developed technologies for river clean up using floating trash barriers to arrest solid waste in rivers and lakes. The technology has been successfully deployed in eight cities. Having worked on two river projects, Mr Sekhar explained how trash on land enters river bodies following rainfall and spreads into the oceans eventually, from where it is hard to extract. “We need to intercept in the river itself. No one knows the exact scale of the marine litter problem, which is essential in order to achieve economies of scale in clean-up efforts. We are also using AI to generate date on waste in rivers,” Mr Sekhar said.
- Mr Priyaranjan Sinha – Ganesh Engineering
Mr Sinha spoke about the decentralised waste solutions at source and options offered by Buxar-based Ganesh Engineering in rural Bihar. The company is involved in providing technological solutions for biomass waste through gasification.
Parting words from Ms Bineesha: “There is a wide variety of technology available but the application of this technology in the right way is questionable. It’s not enough to have smart technology – you need to build the ecosystem, financial viability and social engineering. Successful waste management requires connections among these various aspects.”
