The first-of-its kind auto-shredding plant in India through a joint venture between state-run MSTC and Mahindra Intertrade is all set to come up in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. Five more will come up in phases across the country in the coming days with an investment of around Rs 200 crore each.
The two companies had in April last year signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for setting up a Joint Venture Company for establishing the auto shredding unit.
India does not have an organized car breaking industry even as the vehicular population in the country is growing by leaps and by bounds each year. Older vehicles are dismantled in a very unscientific manner, mostly by the unorganised sector, and this causes harm to the environment. The government, however, is working on to bring in a policy to scrap old vehicles.
A strong car breaking policy is not only beneficial for the environment point of view, it also does help the domestic steel industry, particularly secondary players, by ensuring steady supply of scrap and bring down imports of scrap resulting in foreign exchange savings. Such initiatives are required for a stronger and better India.
Apart from these, the shredding of automobiles and other scrap will facilitate & promote recycling, reduce pollution and make Indian roads safe for driving. Recycling will also make Indian steel more competitive vis-a-vis imported steels.
Vehicles in India are given licence to run for 15 years, but there are more than 30 million vehicles on road which have long past their licence period. These vehicles mostly ply in rural and semi-urban areas which the checks and balances are minimal.
Shredding of automobiles in scientific manner will also reduce the usage of raw materials like iron ore and coking coal. It will also reduce significant imports of aluminum scrap.
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