Emphasizing on the importance of circular economy in a country like India, NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said that tremendous value can be realized by the adoption of Circular Economy Business Models.

Speaking at FICCI’s Circular Economy Symposium-2018, Kant said “India needs to grow at about 10 per cent annually for the next three decades to be able to meet the ever-rising demands of its growing population but the challenge is how do we do it in extremely innovative and sustainable manner.”

Circular Economy seeks to minimize the resource under-utilization of any kind to maximum extent possible, he added.

According to FICCI-Accenture study report, India can reap the benefits of half a trillion dollar worth of economic value chain by 2030 through the use of Circular Economic Model.

“Extraction of Gold from e-waste is a billion dollar opportunity”, Kant said.

In order to bag the vast business opportunities that lie ahead across different sectors, India needs to bring about a change in mindset, he opined.

Kant said need is to change mindset from reduction of waste to monetization of waste and emphasized on the need to shift away from the traditional way of doing business to innovative ways.

Kant also stressed that the government needs to push the limits of the circular economy and make it a mass movement which is essential for the growth and development of economy, not only this, it will help in creating jobs and wealth.

Kant also suggested using grand challenges to bring solutions by innovators across the world.

Other suggestion that he made during the event includes creation of enabling regulatory framework, incentivize use of renewable materials.

Stressing on the need to embed the principles of circular economy in India's school education system Kant said that this process will equip young learners with the right mindset and enable them to become active shapers of a movement that will secure the future with finite resources.

In addition, he said India needs a set of fiscal incentives for startups working in recyclability domain.

He appreciated FICCI-Accenture efforts for accelerating India Circular economy shift. (KNN/YV)