Solid waste management is a major global environmental challenge specially faced by urban and semi-urban locations.

Significant proportions of solid wastes, even in large and medium cities/towns in India, are disposed by land filling/dumping. Most dumping sites are a serious health hazard to people living in the neighbourhood and are liable to contaminate ground water.

All ITC businesses practice the following strategies for management of solid waste.

Strategy 1 - 100% Recycling: All ITC units/businesses, apart from minimising waste generation, are mandated to recycle 100% of waste generated by their operations. Waste recycling provides solutions for saving natural resources and energy. It also reduces costs and environmental pollution. Recycling also prevents wastes from reaching landfills and in fact creates significant employment opportunities.

Strategy 2 - Creating a Positive Footprint: Wastepaper is a key input in the manufacture of recycled paperboards. Our Paperboards & Specialty Papers business, a leader in the Paperboards segment has commenced a strategic initiative for wastepaper recycling designated ‘WOW’ (Wealth Out of Waste). This intervention has established an efficient collection and recycling chain, targeting larger sources of aggregation such as schools, offices and residential colonies. Apart from contributing to a cleaner environment, WOW is an important source of cost competitiveness for the industry.

Classification & Disposal

4.4 % of total solid wastes*, in ITC are categorised as hazardous wastes in accordance with the Indian statutes. Over 99%, of such hazardous wastes is recycled, as shown below: