Government To Perform Due Diligence To Find Any Potential Environmental Risks Associated With Lithium-ion Batteries
The Union government will exercise due diligence to guard people from any potential environmental risks associated with lithium-ion batteries, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari told Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. The government is also promoting a circular economy for the recycling of various waste materials.
The minister was replying to Congress member Ranjeet Ranjan, who raised concerns over the ill effects of lithium-ion battery waste dumping and its effects on workers in manufacturing units. In order to validate his findings, Ranjan cited a research report. According to the report, lithium-ion batteries with a long life cycle poison the earth and worsen soil fertility. However, Gadkari clarified that the government has not found any such report so far.
“There is no such report or finding with us. If anything of the sort comes to our attention, then we will consider it. We will take serious note of the issue and work out recycling of lithium-ion battery waste,” Gadkari said.
This is futuristic technology. He stated that our government is working in the direction of futuristic technology, vision, and planning. According to him, India is poised to become the leading electric vehicle exporting nation in the next five years.
As part of implementing a circular economy. The government has undertaken measures such as car scrapping, rubber recycling with bitumin, road construction using plastic, etc. “Our country imports fossil fuels worth over Rs 16 lakh crore annually, and there is no need to explain to Delhites what the level of pollution is here,” he stated.
Lithium battery manufacturing consists of four chemicals, and the government is working on aluminum steel ion batteries and aluminum air technology. The minister clarified that the electric vehicle cost is only Rs. 10, while the petrol vehicle cost (of running) is Rs. 100 to Rs. 110.
However, electric vehicles are a bit expensive compared to petrol or diesel vehicles. “Electric vehicles are very popular. The only problem is that the cost difference between a petrol or diesel vehicle and an e-vehicle is high, and it depends on the volume. When the volume will increase, I feel that it is my estimate; I am not giving you the promise that within one and a half years, the cost of petrol, diesel, and e-vehicles will be the same,” he said.
The minister also confirmed the reports of detecting the sixth-largest lithium-ion reserve in Jammu and Kashmir, while India is importing 1,200 metric tons of lithium-ion.
