“The circular economy will become the backbone of consumption”

Elima is pioneering a “landfill-free future” by providing integrated waste management solutions. Since launching in 2022 with an e-waste recycling facility in Hyderabad, the company has rapidly expanded, using technology and data-driven insights to help businesses eliminate waste from their supply chains. 

In this interview, Abhishek Agashe, Co-founder & CEO of Elima, shares insights on overcoming early challenges, leveraging innovation, and scaling sustainable waste management. He discusses Elima’s role in advancing circular economies, supporting waste pickers, and aligning with “Make in India” and “Digital India”. Join us as we explore how Elima is transforming waste into a valuable resource for a more sustainable future.

IBT: Elima commenced operations in 2022 with the launch of an e-waste recycling facility in Hyderabad. Could you share the key challenges and successes experienced during this initial phase?

Abhishek Agashe: All the founders come with significant experience in this field. Individually, we have around 10 to 12 years of experience, adding up to a combined 35 to 40 years. This background gave us a deep understanding of the intricacies of operating and setting up a plant, including compliance requirements.

When we decided to commence operations, our prior experience helped reduce the learning curve in terms of setup. We knew what machinery to procure and the necessary licenses to obtain. The Pollution Control Board offered both dismantling and recycling licenses, and we initially started as a dismantler since it required lower CAPEX compared to a recycling plant. We also had clarity on the machinery, tools, and labor required for processing materials.

While setting up was relatively smooth, obtaining various approvals and licenses—beyond just the Pollution Control Board, including labor licenses, factory licenses, and environmental clearances—was a learning experience. Fortunately, Telangana’s ease of doing business and one-window clearance system made the process more manageable.

Overall, the setup phase was not a major challenge, though operational challenges always arise once operations commence.

IBT: Your mission emphasizes creating infrastructure backed by innovative technologies for waste collection, segregation, reuse, and recycling. Can you elaborate on the specific technologies Elima employs to achieve this?

Abhishek Agashe:

We realized that a circular economy is about keeping materials in use by eliminating waste—everything becomes an infinite secondary resource. To enable this, infrastructure is critical. Since we handle physical materials, not digital products, we needed to build decentralized infrastructure, as reverse supply chains are scattered and materials don’t come from a single source.

We also saw that in first-mile logistics—especially for items like e-waste or plastics—the materials are high in volume but low in weight, making centralized transport inefficient. So, decentralization became key.

Processing was the third crucial aspect. To turn scrap into high-quality industrial inputs, we combined physical and digital tech. Digitally, we use GPS-based clustering and open-source route-planning tools to optimize collections. On the physical side, we’ve invested in R&D. For instance, we developed a process to convert refrigerator foam (polyurethane) back into polyol for reuse. We also improved recycling methods for complex plastics from washing machines, adjusting processing parameters to create usable filled plastics—our results are now with CEPET for testing.

This blend of digital insight and physical innovation is central to how we streamline circular economy operations.

IBT: Elima aims to serve businesses of all sizes with integrated waste management solutions. How do you tailor your services to meet the diverse needs of small enterprises versus large corporations?

Abhishek Agashe: In our field, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. While the materials may be the same, both large and small customers generate waste—such as paper waste. That’s why we follow a clustering approach, as I mentioned earlier. We identify clusters with a high density of large customers, a medium density of mid-sized customers, and so on. Using a formula based on clustering and estimated waste generation, we conduct extensive data analysis in the backend.

This analysis helps us understand, based on company size, the frequency and type of waste generated across different industries, as well as the expected monthly and yearly volumes. Based on these insights, we decentralize our operations. This decentralization then allows us to extend services to smaller customers in the same vicinity. While these customers may generate lower volumes, their proximity helps reduce our first-mile logistics costs.

To further optimize operations, we use route planning and logistics management to facilitate multiple pickups within the same vehicle, maximizing space utilization. By analyzing the types of materials to be collected, we can strategically plan what kind of truck and labor to deploy.

Our approach typically begins with larger customers, where volume plays a key role. Once we establish a solid presence in a cluster, we gradually extend services down the value chain, catering to small and medium enterprises. As our customer density grows in a particular area, we aim to provide seamless waste management solutions even for end consumers, such as housing societies, within the next two to three years. Essentially, we follow a top-down approach to ensure efficiency and scalability.

IBT: The company believes that circular economies will become primary supply chains for all businesses in the future. What steps is Elima taking to advocate for and facilitate this?

Abhishek Agashe: Today, the world consumes 80–90 billion tons of resources annually, mostly through mining and deforestation—and with growing populations and rising purchasing power, this consumption will only increase. Unlike others who push for reduced consumption, we believe progress is driven by it. The challenge is to reduce the environmental impact by using secondary raw materials—those recovered through repair, refurbishment, or recycling.

For manufacturers, the adoption of such materials depends on three things: scale, quality, and cost. They need consistent volumes, materials that match virgin quality, and competitive pricing. Even a slight compromise in quality or a higher price can be a deal-breaker.

That’s why we focus on innovations across upstream and downstream processing—to optimize all three. If we get the cost, quality, and quantity right, there’s no reason manufacturers won’t adopt secondary materials.

Ultimately, end users won’t accept a product just because it’s sustainable—it also has to perform as well as or better than what they’re used to. By keeping user experience, quality, and price at the core, we’re making circularity practical and scalable.

IBT: Elima has undertaken social impact projects focusing on improving the lives of waste pickers and promoting sustainable practices. Could you provide insights into these initiatives and their outcomes?

Abhishek Agashe: In India, nearly 1% of the population is involved in waste management, mostly in informal or unorganized roles—whether as waste pickers, municipal workers, or laborers in unauthorized recycling units. The gap between formal and informal sectors is vast, mainly due to high compliance costs in formal recycling. This leads to widespread exploitation in the informal space, lacking fair wages, safety, and dignity.

Our social impact initiatives aim to bridge this gap by formalizing the workforce without disrupting cost structures. We work within settlements to train waste workers in better segregation practices, which improves recycling quality and boosts their income. We also provide PPE kits and safety training to reduce exposure to hazardous materials like glass, metal, and medical waste.

Beyond the workforce, we focus on building awareness. We engage schools, colleges, and corporates to shift public behavior around waste. Fifteen years ago, tossing a wrapper out of a car was normal—today, it’s socially frowned upon. This shift came from sustained education, and we believe continued awareness can drive deeper, lasting change. We also organize lake clean-up drives, which often reveal the environmental damage caused by unmanaged waste. While humans can filter water, animals and aquatic life can’t—they suffer directly, and this harms biodiversity. The collapse of natural ecosystems eventually affects human life through climate extremes and pollution.

Though these activities don’t bring direct revenue, we see them as essential. As part of this industry, we feel a responsibility to raise awareness and push for systemic, meaningful change.

Abhishek Agashe, Chief Executive Officer, Kashyap Devulapally, Chief Compliance Officer and Mohit Kumar V, Chief Operations Officer at Elima

IBT: What role does technology play in scaling Elima’s circular economy model, and can you share examples of such technologies in action?

Abhishek Agashe: We’re investing in both digital and physical technologies to scale our circular economy model. Digitally, we focus on collection, logistics, and pricing using in-house ERP tools that map and track material flow—what’s coming in, going out, when to buy, at what cost, and where to send it. This system helps us—and our customers—make fast, data-driven decisions.

For example, we advise clients on optimal scrap storage and disposal frequency to reduce carbon emissions caused by frequent, inefficient pickups. It’s not just about having data, but using it to create actionable strategies.

On the physical side, we view ourselves increasingly as a raw materials company. Our R&D focuses on enhancing recycled materials so they can compete with or approach the quality of virgin resources—while keeping costs lower. In essence, our physical tech boosts material value, while our digital tools streamline operations and fuel growth with precision.

IBT: Elima operates across various sectors and has a presence in multiple Indian cities. How do you navigate the regulatory and logistical challenges associated with waste management in different regions?

Abhishek Agashe: India actually has one of the world’s most advanced regulatory frameworks for waste management, thanks to bodies like the CPCB and MOEF. For instance, earlier, transporting e-waste across states required multiple permits, but with the E-Waste Management Rules, a unified national policy has simplified this process. While some variations in state-level implementation remain, the overall shift toward standardization has been a major improvement. What’s needed now is uniform enforcement across states to avoid confusion and streamline operations.

At the city level, each region is unique—not just in infrastructure, but also in public behavior. So unlike a standardized product rollout, our model requires tailoring solutions city by city, while staying policy-compliant. Our in-house legal and compliance team plays a key role in helping us navigate these differences and scale effectively.

As a company, we focus on managing recyclable materials like plastics, metals, and e-waste—we don’t handle food, hazardous, or biomedical waste. Our strategy is to establish a strong local presence in one city, validate the model, and then scale. Over the past three years, we’ve focused mainly on South India for recycling, while our IT asset management services operate pan-India. For recyclables like metals and e-waste, we also have nationwide collection capabilities, but we aim to keep procurement and disposal localized to optimize efficiency.

IBT: As a key player in India’s Digital India and Make in India movements, how does Elima align its objectives with national sustainability goals, and what future plans do you have to contribute further to these initiatives?

Abhishek Agashe: The circular economy will become the backbone of consumption, especially as countries move toward localized supply chains in response to global disruptions like COVID-19. For India, building resilient, self-sufficient systems is key to improving quality of life and ensuring access to essential products. We’re aligned with the Make in India vision, focusing on supplying high-quality secondary raw materials to fuel domestic manufacturing growth and support India’s rising internal demand.

India’s relatively insulated economy gives us a strong foundation, and we aim to support both local and global manufacturing needs through circular solutions. On the Digital India front, rapid advancements—especially in AI—are democratizing technology. Open-source tools now let companies like ours build in-house tech cost-effectively. Our digital focus revolves around three pillars:

• Streamlining operations through automation,

• Gaining visibility into material flow for better decisions,

• Providing insights that help customers optimize scrap quality and management.

By integrating these systems, we strengthen the entire recycling-to-manufacturing chain, aligning directly with India’s sustainability and digital transformation goals.