India’s waste tyre problem has grown far beyond its roads. The country now imports millions of old tyres from the West. These tyres are driving pollution and health hazards.
Regulation aims to stop tyre import for burning. However, monitoring is weak. Customs use broad codes that hide tyre waste as rubber scrap. As a result, many imported tyres land in India’s unregulated pyrolysis plants. These facilities burn rubber to extract oil and carbon black. They do so with limited environmental safeguards. The smoke is toxic. It contains carcinogens such as dioxins and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs). Villages downwind of such plants report foul smells and black soot.
Countries like the UK, USA, and Gulf states send these tyres as scrap. As a result, India has become a dumping ground for foreign waste. Once shipped here, tyres often end up in poorly monitored plants, many of which operate outside legal oversight.
Local recycling infrastructure was meant to cope with domestic tyre waste. However, the surge in imports has overwhelmed it. Industry bodies warn that India’s recycling capacity is now exceeded.
Workers in these plants face dangerous conditions. They have little safety gear. Exposure to fumes and soot is common. Long-term health effects are reported. At the same time, nearby communities face polluted air and water.
While the recycling rules are clear, enforcement remains weak. As a result, loopholes allow traders to divert imported tyres to unregulated processing plants. In turn, this sidesteps the ban and generates profit.
Government agencies have issued some closure orders. Still, many plants resume operations after compliance checks. Critics say oversight is weak. They call for stricter regulation and tracking from the port to the plant.
As a result, India’s tyre import boom has turned a waste challenge into a toxic crisis. Without stronger enforcement and improved technology, the country’s air, land, and people will continue to pay the price.
Reference- BBC, The Reporters’ Collective, Down To Earth