Smartphones, laoptopns, tablets and other smart devices in India may soon feature a common USB type-C charging port.
The device makers and associations representing technology companies have agreed to adopt USB Type-C as the standard charging port for electronic products, including smartphones.
The stakeholders reached a consensus at a meeting of an inter-ministerial task force set up by the Union government, consumer affairs secretary Rohit Kumar Singh said on Wednesday, adding “It was deliberated that a different charging port may be adopted for feature phones.”
The government is holding wide-ranging consultations aimed at moving to two standard chargers, one for all compatible devices and another for low-cost feature phones.
The move is also likely to cut down on massive amounts of e-waste generated in the country.
India is estimated to have generated 5 million tonnes of e-waste in 2021, ranking behind only China and the US, Mint reported, citing an ASSOCHAM-EY report.
This comes at a time when other countries and regions are looking to shift to a common charger for all the electronic devices.
On June 7 this year, the EU had passed a provisional legislation to require all future smartphones sold in the EU, including Apple’s iPhone, to be equipped with the universal USB-C port for wired charging by mid-2024, according to a Bloomberg report.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 15 series is likely to feature a USB-C port for charging after the EU made it mandatory to have a unified charging port on all mobile devices. As a result, Apple will have to comply with the rules if it wants to sell iPhones in the region.
