India’s Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Friday (December 13) highlighted the potential of waste as a valuable resource, particularly for road construction and energy generation. Speaking at the Green Bharat Summit held in New Delhi, he said, “People will fight over kachra in future.
The Union minister also mentioned innovative projects, such as the Dolaro-Ahmedabad highway, while emphasising the need to utilise waste for infrastructure development in his speech, according to a Moneycontrol report.
The challenge of waste management is intensifying, particularly in urban centers, as rising consumption and an expanding middle class drive up waste generation. The issue is particularly acute when it comes to managing plastic, electronic waste, and packaging materials, a problem further compounded by the rapid growth of e-commerce.
The ministry is exploring creative ways to integrate waste materials into road construction, which could help reduce India's dependence on imported bitumen. “Use of waste material can help reduce Bitumen import into India,” Gadkari mentioned.
Discussing waste as a resource for energy, he said, “Plastic is being used to make industrial diesel as well in India… My aim is to create value from waste in India.”