Blue Star gets temporary relief as Delhi HC stays regulator’s e-waste price declaration |
A court stay has temporarily stalled the Narendra Modi government’s latest attempt to enforce minimum prices in India’s e-waste carbon credit market.
Air conditioning and home appliances manufacturer Blue Star had approached the Delhi High Court last month. This was to challenge a new government mandate that required recyclers and electronics firms to assure authorities that they were selling or buying e-waste carbon credits at rates equal to or exceeding a minimum price, according to court documents reviewed by Newslaundry.
Four days after Blue Star’s application, the Delhi High Court on December 24 granted an interim stay on the new declaration until the next hearing on January 27.
The Central Pollution Control Board (CBCP) had introduced the “I hereby confirm and declare…” requirement on December 12. This was on its portal, where carbon credits – known as extended producer responsibility (EPR) certificates in government parlance – are traded between recyclers and electronics companies. A CPCB official, who was not authorised to speak with the media, said the self-attested declaration was introduced for “transparency” in the exchange of EPR certificates.
Without signing the declaration, EPR certificate exchanges could not be completed on the CPCB portal. The declaration also warned that recyclers or producers providing wrong or misleading information during EPR transactions would be liable for action under the Rules.
The move followed Newslaundry’s investigative series ‘