Context: Recently, the Union Ministry of Electronics & IT launched the ERSO Pilot initiative to validate certain transformational policy and process changes to make India the Repair Capital of the World.

• Need: Over the next 5 years, India’s ERSO industry is likely to fetch India up to $20 billion in revenue and also generate millions of jobs.

About Electronics Repair Services Outsourcing (ERSO) initiative

• It aims to promote India as a hub for repairing electronic goods and to assess the feasibility and potential of capturing 20% of the global repair service market within five years.

• The pilot is being held in Bengaluru and will be run for three months.

• India’s e-waste policy will be modified to enable repair companies to domestically recycle 5% of imported goods by weight on a trial basis.

• The repaired goods will not be permitted to be sold in the domestic market.

• New provisions will be made to allow their exportation to regions other than their country of origin.

• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Electronics & IT.

Significances of the ERSO initiative

• The project has been identified as a game-changer for India and make India a world leader in a hitherto untapped domain.

• The ERSO initiative will be a game-changer for Global environmental sustainability and reiterates India’s commitment to the environment and our planet.

• The initiative will enable extension of device life globally by providing cheap and reliable repair of ICT products for the globe.