Amid rising concerns over global scrap supply on the back of resource nationalism in scrap supplying nations, the Indian government aims to transition India from import dependence to being a self-sufficient scrap producer.

"The government is working on various policies on recycling projects to support generating enough scrap to cater to the rising scrap demand in India," Material Recycling Association of India (MRAI) vice president Zain Nathani said at Monday’s International Business Summit 2023 in Bangkok attended by Kallanish.

"As more and more countries today are working on protectionism of raw materials, this is going to have a tremendous impact on large import-based economies like us [India]," Nathani added. "But we do realise this ... It is not that the Indian government or the Indian industry remained silent. In the last few years, our government has also been framing policies to support recycling, so over the next decade or so, our industry will shift from being import-dependent to a self-sufficient industry."

Policies like Steel Scrap Policy, National Non-Ferrous Metal Framework, EPR policy on plastic, tyres, and batteries, as well as the circular economy, are being implemented or are going to be implemented shortly, Nathani explained.

"MRAI has recently concluded a study with the Joint Public Commission (JPC) on the domestic generation of ferrous scrap. MRAI is also a knowledge partner for the circular economy project in Maharashtra state," the vice president informed.

"The reason for sharing all this information is that, in the short term, we do realise the fact that India is going to be interdependent on the larger scrap exporting countries for vital raw materials. But, as an association, MRAI is very confident that India is poised to lead a recycling revolution in the next decade, driven by the policies implemented by the government of India," Nathani concluded.