Nokia India today unveiled its ‘take-back’ campaign in the city on the occasion of World Environement Day, whereby the company would plant a sapling for every used mobile customers deposit at recyling bins in its outlets.
Every time you return a junk mobile phone to a Nokia dealer, the firm will thank you by planting a tree, apart from recycling that phone in an eco-friendly manner.
Nokia India regenerated the “Take Back” campaign as result of a survey showing India at the bottom of the chart with only 17 percent people having knowledge about recyclability of phones. Nokia India also started a scheme of giving surprise gifts, in order to involve more and more people in the campaign.
Mobile phones, more so than PCs and laptops could be the worlds biggest contributor to electronic junk on this planet. And there is very low awareness about recycling of mobile phones in the country. As per a survey done by Nokia in 13 different countries, the percentage of people who actually recycled their phones stood at 3%. Up to 50% of the surveyed people were absolutely unaware that mobile phones could be recycled. It was found that recycling awareness was the lowest in India standing at 17%.
Stating that 80 per cent of a used phone, including the headsets, chargers and other accessories could be recycled, he said the campaign here followed a pilot study in Bangalore, Delhi, Gurgaon and Ludhiana early this year, which received tremendous response from the public. “A total of three tonnes of waste, including 10,000 handsets, were collected within the first 45 days of the launch,” Nokia India (Corporate Affairs) Director Ambrish Bakaya told reporters.
