Solid Waste Management and Recycling

TRADE AND RECYCLING OF INORGANIC SOLID WASTE IN HYDERABAD 139

7.3. WHOLESALE TRADERS

Wholesale traders are the dominant suppliers of secondary materials to the recycling
units. Their background is still mainly that of forward castes, although 20 percent of
them have a scheduled or backward caste background. Almost half has a tertiary
education degree. Another 20 percent of the traders have only primary education, and
the remainder a secondary education. The wholesale units are generally well-estab-
lished, with 60 percent being established in or before the 1970s. In the 1990s, a second
group started up activities (24 percent).

The wholesale traders usually specialize in a single waste since they deal in larger
quantities of mainly uncontaminated waste. However, 40 percent also deal in a second
material, which forms up to 10 percent of their turnover. There are 9 paper whole-
salers, 9 in metal, 4 dealers in bottles, and 2 in plastics. They work in business
premises; 60 percent invest in their own premises, and forty percent of the wholesalers
rent it. Their main activity is sorting out waste, storing it and transporting it to the recy-
cling units, which buy from them.

They sell the waste either to other local wholesale traders and recycling units, or
directly to recycling units located elsewhere in Maharastra, Tamil Nadu and Karna-
taka. Recycling units in other states pay relatively higher prices. The wholesale traders
are less affected than retailers by the fluctuations in the prices of waste materials since
they handle large quantities of materials. However, they run risks from unreliable
suppliers and buyers Wholesale traders need to pay their suppliers immediately and
also give them loans in times of needs. The recycling enterprises, which buy the mate-

Table 7.2. Wages and nature of employment in different types of recycling units

Units Number of
males
employed

Wages of male

worker

Number of

females

employed

Wages of women

workers

Total

workers

(M+F)

Nature of

employment

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10

32

38

22

18

16

20

25

22

110

20

1,500 to 1,700

1,500 to 1,700

1,600 to 2,300

1,500 to 2,200

1,400 to 3,000

2,000 to 2,200

1,700 to 2,600

1,800 to 2,500

1,800 to 3,000

1,800 to 2,600

23

28

20

12

3

40

15

18

10

10

1,100 to 1,900

9,00 to 1,150

1,100 to 1,450

1,100 to 1,500

1,300

1,000 to 1,200

1,200 to 1,500

1,200 to 1,500

1,100 to 1,500

1,250 to 1,650

55

66

42

30

19

60

40

40

120

30

Contract

Contract

Contract

Contract

Contract

Casual +

Contract

Contract

Contract

Casual +

contract

Contract

Source: field survey among workers (not the same units as in previous tables)