Battery Waste Management Rules, 2022

On 24th August, 2022, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India, published the Battery Waste Management Rules, 2022. The rules aim to ensure environmentally sound management of waste batteries.

• The new rules will replace Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules, 2001.

Coverage: The rules cover all types of batteries, viz. Electric Vehicle batteries, portable batteries, automotive batteries and industrial batteries.

Extended Producer Responsibility: The rules are based on the concept of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) where the producers (including importers) of batteries are responsible for collection and recycling/refurbishment of waste batteries and use of recovered materials from wastes into new batteries.

• EPR mandates all waste batteries to be collected and sent for recycling/refurbishment, and it prohibits disposal in landfills and incineration.
• Producers may engage themselves or authorise any other entity for collection, recycling or refurbishment of waste batteries to meet the EPR obligations.