But just like every coin has two sides, the dark side of this booming tech industry of India is the mass production of electronic waste or e-waste. The government, public and private sector alone contribute to about three-fourths of the e-waste produced.

The rate at which this waste is produced is far higher than the waste that Indian recycling industry can treat and control leading to a huge backlog being thrown in dump yards and landfills. Lead and other heavy metals from e-waste account for the maximum damage caused to land due to soil pollution and water contamination.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change designed the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), which puts the onus on the companies manufacturing the products to use eco-friendly designs so as to reduce recycling cost. The EPR program in India calls for collection 30% of waste in two years and 70% waste in seven years.

Our need to have the latest device is harming not just the environment but also the people who work in hazardous conditions segregating and processing this e-waste, especially in India and its neighbouring countries where e-waste regulations are not as solid as in the EU or the US of A. The poverty and corruption that exists leads to many people willing to work in such dangerous conditions to earn a living wage.

The solution lies in formalising the e-waste sector in India and putting into action stringent laws that prohibit other nations from dumping waste in India, something similar to the Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY) movement in African countries. E-Parisaraa is India's first government authorised e-waste dealer, operational since 2005. More such e-waste dealers are coming up to serve the need of the hour and hopefully regularise this industry, saving many lives as well as the environment.