This document discusses the informal waste ecosystem in India and its potential role in a circular economy. It introduces Kabadiwallas, informal waste collectors in India who play a major role in waste management and recycling. The document reports on a survey of over 600 Kabadiwallas in Chennai that found most have been in the business for over 10 years and earn modest incomes. It argues that technology could help connect Kabadiwallas across the recycling supply chain more efficiently. The document concludes that strengthening and formalizing the role of Kabadiwallas while maintaining the decentralized system could boost recycling rates and move India closer to a circular economy.

1. What the Informal Waste Ecosystem in
India Could Mean for the Circular Economy
Siddharth Hande | Dr. H.S Sudhira
16th November 2015

2. H. S. Sudhira
Director, Gubbi Labs
Dr. Sudhira leads research and analysis for Kabadiwalla Connect. He is a trained researcher and
employs transdisciplinary approaches to study cities and ecosystems.
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With a strong desire to carryout independent and grounded research he has established Gubbi Labs, a
private research collective that works on a host of domains ranging from sustainable ecosystems to
livable settlements.
Siddharth Hande
Founder, Kabadiwalla Connect
Siddharth is a geo-spatial analyst, and an urban studies researcher by training.
He is the founder of Supportive Cities and Kabadiwalla Connect, which are social enterprises in the
fields of alternative career development and waste management respectively.
He is also the co-founder and managing director of N-Spatial Technologies, which is a spatial research,
training, application and product development consultancy.

3. Setting the context
Waste management in developed vs. developing countries
● Segregation | Collection | Disposal | Recycling is highly formalised and technology
focused in developed countries | not the case in most developing nations.
● Wastes in Indian cities | Status: Managed by the often ill-equipped local bodies
● Average recycling rate in the EU is around 40%
● In India [?]

6. Waste Management in the UK

7. Introducing our Invisible Recyclers
The Kabadiwalla

8. Introducing our Invisible Recyclers
The Kabadiwalla

9. Data on Kabadiwalla’s were obtained from surveys carried out extensively in select
parts of Chennai to start with - with about 600 Kabadiwalla’s mapped!
Some snapshots from preliminary analysis:
● Oldest Kabadiwalla: 65 years
● Average # of years in business: 14
● About a third of the sample earn between Rs. 20,000 - Rs. 30,000 per month
● And another third less than Rs. 20,000 per month
Introducing our Invisible Recyclers
The Kabadiwalla

10. Introducing our Invisible Recyclers
The Kabadiwalla

11. Introducing our Invisible Recyclers
The Kabadiwalla

12. Introducing our Invisible Recyclers
The Kabadiwalla

13. The Role of Technology
● India - information asymmetry | lack of transparent pricing
● How can technology can mediate across the value chain | inverse ‘buying club’
● How do we design an app?

14. Policy and Next steps
● Segregation to be made mandatory / non-negotiable, perhaps incentivising
segregation and behavioural change
● Strengthen the Kabadiwallas to play greater role in waste management while
retaining the informal structure- seems to be more effective as a decentralized
approach to SWM
● Upcycled products to be encouraged through tax holidays/exemptions and
other incentives
Next steps
● Complete mapping of Kabadiwalla’s in Chennai
● Enable upcycling of resources to complete the loop for circular economy
● Capturing the material flows across different paths/channels