What is Nepal doing when a Type-C port charger is mandatory in Europe and India?

What is Nepal doing when a Type-C port charger is mandatory in Europe and India?

The European Union (EU) has mandated a USB-C port on all types of electronic devices sold in its member countries. Following this step of Europe, India has also started discussions on making Type-C chargers mandatory in its country.

With the aim of managing electronic waste (e-waste) and facilitating user access to all devices, the EU has mandated USB-C ports on all phones and devices. By signing the decision, the European countries have implemented the mandatory USB-C port in all types of smartphones sold within the Union by 2024.

It is seen that the Indian government will also support this step adopted by Europe. For that, last Wednesday, India's Ministry of Consumer Affairs, telecommunication regulatory bodies, mobile manufacturing companies and related organizations held discussions.

The discussion has also formed a committee for the necessary study of the subject of making Type-C compulsory in all devices. After the said study committee submits the necessary study on this matter and submits the report, the Ministry will proceed with the policy making work.

The biggest impact of this decision seems to be on the iPhone. Even Apple, which is providing Lightning port, has to use Type-C port in its iPhones.

Not only that, the EU has arranged that USB Type-C ports should be used as charging ports for electronic devices such as laptops, tablets, digital cameras, headphones, e-readers, etc. The association had been conducting necessary discussions and studies on this matter for about a decade.

As consumers are uncomfortable using different chargers for different devices, the association has made arrangements to use the same charger for all devices. The most important thing is that if all the devices have one charger, the consumption of the charger will be reduced and it will also help to reduce electrical waste.

When the European Union and India are making Type-C ports mandatory for e-waste management, we asked the chairman of the regulatory Nepal Telecommunication Authority, Purushottam Khanal, about Nepal's preparation. He said that the government has not taken any steps to make Type-C compulsory.

"Although we have not entered the issue of making Type-C mandatory, we have included the issue of testing the quality of batteries and chargers in this year's budget", Khanal said, "Electrical waste management is also in our main plan this year. In this process, the matter of making the charger a single one can be included."