New Delhi: Amitabh Kant, G-20 Sherpa, Government of India, on Thursday said that the long-term low emission development strategy by India for achieving the climate goals and the need for sustainable production, emphasizing on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) highlights that we look at alternative paradigms of production and consumption to achieve sustainable material and wellbeing of society.
Addressing the 6th Edition of ‘FICCI Circular Economy Symposium 2022,’ Kant added that today there is a higher level of awareness present in government, institutions and corporate regarding the circular economy. “During our G-20 presidency, we will lay huge emphasis on providing thrust to the circular economy agenda for developing consensus on key issues. G-20 provides opportunities by accelerating circular transition and FICCI will need to play an effective role in many deliberations under G-20,” he emphasized.
Kant further stated that transitioning to a fully circular economy within a generation will require urgent and large-scale action from all parts of society. Circular economy is necessary for climate change and a huge amount of cross sectoral collaboration is critical to facilitate circular economy.
“We ensure that regulations do not become burdensome and that there are cross cutting issues which will be identified and resolved. We will promote it through business models and startups and create a business model of a circular economy. It has to be a part of innovation, part of the business model that everything we produce becomes an input into another thing that we produce, therefore there are backward and forward linkages,” he added.
Kant stated that the Ministry of Environment and Forests in 2022 introduced Extended Producers Responsibility for used tires, batteries, revised rules for e-wastes and plastics. The Scrapping policy for end of life of vehicles with the enabling framework is in place now and there is extended producer responsibility in several other additional sectors that will soon be finalized, he added.
He emphasized that climate change and material use are closely linked as circular economy strategies ultimately prioritize material value retention and cut excess consumption; they can be extremely effective in cutting greenhouse gas emissions, stated Kant.
Dr Michael Bucki, Counsellor and Head of Section – Sustainable Modernization, Delegation of the European Union of India, said that the circular economy can play the role as an enabler to boost productivity and save cost, energy and greenhouse emission. More efficient digital business models can strengthen domestic capacities and deliver sustainable solutions for the globe, he added.
Amit Sinha, Chair, FICCI National CE Committee and President – Group Strategy, Mahindra & Mahindra, said that the circular economy is the key bridge between economic growth and resource consumption. While the circular economy has been in discussion but now, more than ever, there is a clear, economic rational business opportunity is getting created, he added.
Dr Naresh Tyagi, Co-Chair, FICCI National CE Committee and Chief Sustainability Officer, Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Ltd, said that circular economy is the new paradigm that emphasizes on eliminating waste and provides a greater opportunity for optimal use of resources in manufacturing process and end use. Circular economy has great potential and can replace the use-and-throw model.
Sundeep Singh, Managing Director, Accenture Strategy & Consulting, said that there is a huge opportunity to accelerate progress on circular transition in India through a standardized framework, which leverages the global measurement frameworks but also captures few additional KPIs to reflect India-specific nuances. He also shared three key design principles to build such a framework.”
