E-waste Collector
Collects old electronic products from retailers and repair shops, packs, labels and transports them, and promotes safe e-waste disposal.
Overview
E-Waste Collection is an important task required for the sustainability of the environment. It is the collection of old electronic products like refrigerators, TVs, computers and other electronic devices. The tasks an E-Waste Collector is expected to perform include not only collecting e-waste from retailers, repair shops and other unorganised stakeholders but disposing of these in an environmentally friendly process. They are responsible for promoting the importance of e-waste management in the society and creating awareness about the ill effects of improper handling of e-waste. They are also responsible for packaging the e-waste, labelling and maintaining logs about transportation, and finally transporting the collected e-waste to the central warehouse.
Where they work
- E-waste collecting companies across India
Work environment
You will be working for 8/9 hours per day and for 6 days per week.
Opportunities for work exist for differently abled in this field.
Skills and interests
This career might suit you if…
- You have good communication skills
- You like to assemble things
- You have good analytical skills
- You are organised in your work
Eligibility and education roadmap
Please check the duration of the course during enrolment. NSQF course levels, entry requirements and availability change — verify with the training provider.
- 1Minimum qualification: after completion of class 10 and at least 1 year of work experience in hardware repair you can enrol for a National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF) Level 4 course. (The card names the Smartphone Repair Technician course here, which is the course on another card — check the correct course name with the training provider.)
Forms, exams and applications
Exam names above are as printed in the source card. Application windows, eligibility and syllabi change — always check the official notification for current dates.
Where to apply
The institute list printed on this card is of wood science, forestry and wood-carving institutes, which does not match e-waste work, so it is not reproduced. Look for authorised e-waste training under the Electronics Sector Skills Council or your State pollution control board — verify before enrolling.
These institute lists are indicative examples from the source card, not a ranked or complete directory. Always verify accreditation on the institute's official website.
Career outcomes
Growth path
- 1E-Waste Helper
- 2E-Waste Collector
- 3E-Waste Manager
Expected income
₹20,000 per month (average gross, as printed)
The card gives the average gross salary as INR 20,000 per month, citing a SalaryExpert page for garbage collectors rather than e-waste collectors. The figures are indicative and subject to change.
SourceRelated careers to explore
Waste Collector
Collects and segregates waste, garbage and rubbish from streets, bins and landfills — reusable waste for recycling and non-reusable waste for disposal.
Smartphone Repair Technician
Diagnoses and repairs faults in customers' phones — front-end or hardware-level repair as well as software issues.
Student action plan
What you can do this month
- Read this whole roadmap and note any subjects, exams or institutes you don't recognise yet.
- Talk to a teacher or school counsellor about how your current subjects connect to Any Stream.
- Look for a school club, competition or online course related to working outdoors.
- Shortlist 2–3 institutes from the list above and check their official website for current admission details.
- Save this career and compare it with 1–2 others you're considering.
Example from the field
Suhaib Malik — A third-generation aggregator, one of hundreds based in Mustafabad; his father and grandfather traded in scrap iron for decades. The 26-year-old ventured into the e-waste sector in 2018 after hearing how others were earning more by switching, and is now expanding by doing business sustainably with Karo Sambhav. Working conditions in his shop and his finances have improved: 'We don't even have to break down the keyboards anymore,' he says, 'we just hand them over as is' — which spares his workers hours of harmful labour with toxic waste. Every couple of weeks a truck weighs the electronics and packs them into bar-coded sacks for certified responsible recyclers. He sources e-waste from about 100 smaller dealers in New Delhi as well as Bihar and West Bengal.
SourceThis profile is shared for training/educational purposes only, as printed in the source card.
Sources and update notice
- Career card source: Exploring Career Paths with Career Cards, Volume 2, printed page 917 (NCERT / UNICEF India / PSSCIVE Bhopal, First Edition, April 2025).
- Income source: https://www.salaryexpert.com/salary/job/garbage-collector/india
- Last reviewed on this site: 2026-08-21
Two panels on this card belong to other careers: the pathway names the Smartphone Repair Technician NSQF course, and the institute list is of wood science, forestry and wood-carving institutes — both are flagged and the institute list is not reproduced. The salary source is a SalaryExpert page for garbage collectors. E-waste handling is regulated: dismantling and recycling must be done by recyclers authorised under India's e-waste rules, so check the Central Pollution Control Board's requirements before taking up this work.
Eligibility, fees, exam patterns and admissions change often. Always verify current details on official institute, exam-body or government websites before making decisions.