On 16 October 2026, GSTN opened the e-Invoicing system to recipient-generated self-invoices under the Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) for taxpayers with an Aggregate Annual Turnover (AATO) of ₹5 crore and above. Two new supply type codes now sit in the e-Invoice schema: RCMDOM for domestic purchases from unregistered sellers, and RCMIMP for import of services from suppliers outside India. Knowing which code fits which purchase bill decides how your accounts team generates the Invoice Reference Number (IRN).
The government fixed a floor price for e-waste recycling certificates, 30% of the environmental compensation for dodging the rule, which works out to ₹22 a kg for consumer electronics and ₹10 to ₹41 across other categories. That floor is what lets a registered recycler pay a real rate for your old TV or laptop instead of a race-to-the-bottom price. On 22 October 2026 the Environment Minister called for "coordination between producers and recyclers." In e-waste, that coordination is a court fight: Samsung, LG, Havells, Daikin and Voltas have asked the Delhi High Court to strike the floor down and let the market set the price. For the collector and the recycler, the whole economics of doing it the legal way rests on how that case ends.
On 19 October 2026, the government said its office clean-up campaign had earned ₹491.28 crore from scrap since 2 October. The figure was ₹304.72 crore at the same point in 2025. Of that, ₹425.06 crore came from the Ministry of Railways, about 86% by our estimate. Railways also sells scrap all year. It reported more than ₹6,700 crore for 2025-26, which is more than the ₹5,102.91 crore the campaign has reported across five years and all ministries. The lots include cut rail, old sleepers, locomotives, coaches, wagons and a small amount of e-waste. This is what is being sold, how the sales work, and where to find open lots on our Auctions page.
Between 1 April and 30 September 2026, India did not rewrite the E-Waste (Management) Rules. It tightened the way compliance is demonstrated. GST-linked invoice controls, certificate cut-offs, return extensions and portal discipline made one point clear for electronics brands: an EPR certificate is credible only when the commercial and material records behind it can be reconciled.
Fifty-eight companies cleared under the ₹1,500 crore critical mineral recycling scheme have pledged about 8.5 lakh tonnes a year of capacity, roughly three times what the government expected. India's registered e-waste recyclers already have more capacity than the country officially generates in e-waste. With a critical minerals stockpile policy due in about a month and lithium prices down by half since May 2026, the real contest now is over collection, and that puts aggregators and collectors in a stronger position.
The 57th GST Council meeting, held in New Delhi on 8 October 2026 under the chairpersonship of Union Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, will change how India’s scrap, recycling and circular-economy businesses buy, move and account for material. If the 56th meeting was about rates, the 57th is about process: registration, returns, refunds, adjudication, e-way bills and the criminal side of GST.
A government-wide Special Campaign 6.0, with a special focus on e-waste disposal, is scheduled to run in offices from 2 to 31 October 2026. A report on 30 September 2026 added a warning about paperwork. A tax notice dated 27 August 2026 alleges that three home-appliance makers claimed tax credits of about $714,000 in total on recycling services that were not shown to have been delivered. The makers have said they will respond or cooperate, and none of the allegations has been tested. For everyone who handles e-waste, from kabadiwalas to recyclers, the lesson is to write the weight, the date and the name on every lot.
September has closed, and each of our four material reports tells a different story. Copper went nowhere after a $750 swing, polymer prices rose round after round, lithium lost a quarter of its value, and Punjab's harvest season has begun. Here is the month in one page, with a link to the full report for your material.
Battery recycling had a tough month on prices. Lithium carbonate futures in China fell about 25% in September, and payables for black mass, the powder recovered from old batteries, slipped week after week. Meanwhile official data shows how much value India's e-waste still loses. Here is the month in numbers, and where the opportunity sits.
September changed the ground rules for India's scrap and recycling trade, from Brussels and Beijing to New Delhi and Punjab. Europe drew a line on metal scrap, India tightened its own import checks, oil above $100 made new plastic dearer, and a fixed biogas price gave straw a ten-year market. Here are the ten changes that matter most, ranked, with what each means and who it affects.
The next global supply chain for critical minerals may not start in a mine. It may start in India’s scrapyards, creating a quantifiable link between a dealer's yard and a multi-billion dollar strategy.
High Profit OpportunityGovernment IncentiveInvestment OpportunityDemand Surge
The global race for critical minerals is forcing a rethink in New Delhi. The nation's path to resource security may not run through traditional mines, but through its vast, chaotic scrap ecosystem.
High Profit OpportunityGovernment IncentiveDemand Surge
The government's 'Viksit Bharat' plan isn't just high-level talk. It's a direct demand signal for decades of growth in the scrap industry, backed by hard targets and new policies.
