Waste is no longer just an environmental issue. Increasingly, it is becoming a strategic economic issue.

As industries around the world race to build the next generation of technologies from artificial intelligence and advanced electronics to electric vehicles and renewable energy systems the demand for critical minerals and high-value materials is rising rapidly. Metals such as indium, tin, lithium, cobalt, and rare earth elements are now essential inputs powering everything from semiconductors to batteries and clean energy infrastructure.

But there is a growing problem. The global supply of these materials remains highly concentrated, vulnerable to geopolitical tensions, and heavily dependent on mining-intensive supply chains. This has made material recovery and recycling far more important than ever before.

In India, that challenge is especially urgent. Despite being one of the world’s fastest-growing technology and manufacturing economies, the country still has limited infrastructure to recover valuable materials from end-of-life products such as electronics, batteries, and industrial waste.

Gurugram-based circular economy startup Karo Sambhav is working to change that. The company has raised ₹56 crore (approximately $6 million) in a pre-Series A funding round led by Rainmatter by Zerodha, the climate-focused investment initiative backed by Zerodha.

The fresh capital will be used to expand recycling infrastructure focused on recovering critical, precious, and high-value materials from waste streams.

Turning Waste Into Strategic Resources

For years, recycling in India has largely been viewed through the lens of waste management. But the conversation is evolving. Today, recycling is increasingly about resource recovery.

Discarded electronics, batteries, and industrial materials contain valuable metals and minerals that can be recovered and reused. Instead of treating waste as something to dispose of, companies are beginning to treat it as an alternative supply source for critical materials.

That shift lies at the heart of Karo Sambhav’s business model.

Founded in 2017 by Pranshu Singhal, the company operates across multiple end-of-life material streams, including:

• E-waste
• Batteries
• Glass
• Industrial material waste
• Other recyclable resource streams

Its goal is to build a circular system where valuable resources remain in use for longer rather than being lost to landfills or inefficient disposal channels. In practical terms, this means reducing dependence on virgin material extraction while improving sustainability and supply resilience.

The Growing E-Waste Challenge

India’s waste problem is growing at an enormous scale. According to industry estimates, India generates around 4.1 million metric tonnes of e-waste annually, making it the third-largest generator of electronic waste in the world.

Globally, the problem is accelerating even faster. Annual e-waste generation is projected to reach 82 million metric tonnes by 2030.

Smartphones, laptops, servers, batteries, appliances, and industrial electronics all eventually reach end-of-life. Without efficient recycling systems, valuable metals embedded in these products are permanently lost. This creates both environmental and economic consequences. As global supply chains become increasingly uncertain, countries with strong recycling capabilities may gain a significant strategic advantage.

Formalizing India’s Recycling Ecosystem

One of India’s biggest recycling challenges is structural. A large share of recycling activity happens within the informal sector. While informal recyclers play an important role in waste collection and material recovery, the ecosystem often lacks standardization, safety protocols, traceability, and technological efficiency.

Karo Sambhav aims to bridge that gap. The company works to formalize India’s fragmented recycling ecosystem by building structured supply chains and compliant recovery systems.

Over the years, it has partnered with several major organizations, including:

• German Agency for International Cooperation
• International Finance Corporation (IFC)
• International Labour Organization (ILO)

These collaborations focus on improving material traceability, strengthening recycling infrastructure, and enabling safer recovery systems. This formalization is critical. Without it, large-scale circular economy adoption remains difficult.

Building Scale Across India

Since its launch, Karo Sambhav has built significant operational scale.

According to the company, it currently operates two recycling facilities and has:

• Channelised more than 150,000 metric tonnes of waste for recycling
• Established collection networks across 50+ cities
• Worked with 50+ corporations on sustainability and recycled-content initiative.

These companies increasingly face pressure to meet sustainability commitments, improve recycled content in supply chains, and reduce waste footprints. That creates strong demand for organized recycling partners.

Why Critical Mineral Recovery Matters Now

What makes Karo Sambhav especially relevant today is its focus on critical mineral recovery. This is no longer a niche sustainability conversation. It is becoming a national priority.

India is investing heavily in:

• Semiconductor manufacturing
• Electric vehicles
• Clean energy
• Battery supply chains
• AI infrastructure

Each of these sectors depends on access to scarce minerals and specialty metals. Recovering these materials domestically through recycling can reduce import dependence and improve supply resilience.

Recognizing this importance, the company’s proposed facility has received Eligibility Status under the Incentive Scheme for Promotion of Critical Mineral Recycling under the National Critical Minerals Mission (NCMM) of the Ministry of Mines. This signals growing policy support for domestic recycling infrastructure.

A Sector Gaining Momentum

Karo Sambhav is not alone in recognizing the opportunity. India’s recycling ecosystem is seeing increasing investor interest as sustainability and resource security move higher on the agenda. Together, these companies are helping build a broader circular economy ecosystem across India. The market remains large and largely underserved. That creates room for significant innovation and infrastructure expansion.

Looking Ahead

With fresh capital from Rainmatter, Karo Sambhav is entering a pivotal growth phase. The company plans to prioritize e-waste recycling, given its high concentration of valuable recoverable metals, while also expanding into adjacent waste streams.

Its larger vision goes beyond recycling alone. Karo Sambhav is building infrastructure for a future where waste is no longer seen as disposal but as resource recovery. That shift may prove critical for India.

As global competition for critical minerals intensifies, the countries that build strong circular supply chains will be better positioned to power next-generation industries. And in that future, companies like Karo Sambhav could play a far bigger role than simply managing waste. They could help power the materials backbone of the digital economy itself.

By : Vanshika Tayal