Is The Government Stimulus Enough For Small Business Recovery?

Businesses are growing in unison with other industries and not in isolation as was the trend earlier. Recycling has become a pivotal industry that needs to be incorporated in an era of growing ESG and CSR compliance. All stakeholders in waste management have to be brought on the same page for a smooth recycling process.

The BW Recycling for Greener Tomorrow Conclave and Awards conducted a session on waste management impaneled by the pioneer stakeholders of this sector. The session found participation from Nirbhay Lumbe, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility of CGI, Wilma Rodrigues, Founder & CEO of Saahas Zero Waste, Ashish Jain Director of Indian Pollution Control Association, BK Soni, Chairman & MD of Eco Recycling, and was hosted by Dr. Sameer Joshi, Hon’ Treasurer of Governing Council Indian Plastic Institute. The stakeholders opined the significance of waste management while developing a nation for the future, along with reinstating the resources required for the continuous growth of the MSMEs.

For businesses to grow sustainably, it is important for them to work symbiotically with society. As BK Soni remarked, “Nature builds the nation”, the development of the MSME sector depends massively on how cohesively it is working for the society. A leading professional working on air quality management and wastement management, Ashish Jain mentioned the contribution of the MSMEs towards the emergence of the economy is enormous. He even added that, in the aftermath of the pandemic, policy intervention has been interjected at the right stages by the government. However, the transition of such policies/ schemes at an implementation level has been a hindrance for several MSMEs. He said, “There is a strong need to appoint implementation agencies and consultants who will take the schemes to the common man”. The leaders contended that the facilitation of such processes/ schemes must not just improve Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) ranking of the state, but also ease its practise at a grassroot level.

It is very important for the supplier of finances and technology of such MSMEs to understand the business and committment of these companies. Wilma Rodrigues noted that access to working capital for SMES and MSMEs is pivotal for their growth. “Waste management is almost an elusive concept for many banks. Technology doesn't always solve our problems. Capital is required at a much lower rate of interest to provide holistic services”. She further mentioned the various RFPs announced by the governments for such renewable energy enterprises do not provide complete information, leading to the proliferation of waste. It is much required for the users to pay the fee while utilising such waste management services.

With time, industries, institutions and individuals are realising their roles to contribute to the reduction of waste. Nirbhay Lumbe said that corporations are expeditiously beginning to invest in long-term CSR practice. He mentioned that simpler mechanisms have to be implemented for people to understand how they are contributing to communities. Although the government has been supportive in various such initiatives, future investment will be required to berift implementation issues.

Albeit the Swachh Bharat initiative by the government has contributed to resource recovery, more appropriate technology, and infrastructure will be required. MSMEs are looking at ways to reduce operational costs along with ensuring minimum wage being paid to people. In recent times, more Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) have been coming to amend issues related to waste management as well.

The speakers concluded that the process of waste collection, dismantling and segregation will only be successful when users are accountable for this. Ashish Jain mentioned, “The loop cannot be complete without people who are generating the waste”.