New rules for vehicle steel recycling in India, what will be the impact on auto companies?

Obnews Automobile Desk: The Indian government has announced the implementation of new environmental rules for vehicle manufacturers. Under these rules, auto companies will have to recycle a portion of the steel used in their vehicles. According to media reports, this rule will be effective from April 2025.

What is the new rule?

As per the government's EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility) norms, at least 8% of the steel used in vehicles sold in 2005-06 will have to be recycled. This figure will be gradually increased to 18% by 2035-36.

What will auto companies have to do?

Under the new rules:

• Companies will have to extract steel from old and unused vehicles.
• It will be mandatory to obtain EPR certificate from authorized scrapping dealers.
• Buy-back program will have to be run to make customers aware.
• All activities will have to be registered on the portal of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

Scrapping Facility and EPR Certificate

According to CPCB, registered vehicle scrapping facilities will issue EPR certificate based on the weight of steel received from scrap vehicles. Companies will meet their recycling targets by purchasing these certificates.

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Impact on vehicle owners

This rule will apply not only to auto manufacturers but also to vehicle owners, bulk consumers (those with more than 100 vehicles), and scrapping facility operators.

Government's focus: Increasing scrapping facility

Officials say the initiative aims to promote formal vehicle scrapping. There are currently 82 registered vehicle scrapping facilities in India, and the government is aiming to increase this to 100 in the next three months.