The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) became the first civic body in the country to begin e-waste collection source and even ensure that the citizens are paid for the waste collected. The system was launched formally on Wednesday as a part of the Mahatma Gandhi Swachhta Mission. The civic body has adopted the public-private partnership route for providing the facilities to the citizens. Officials claimed that the returns citizens would get by giving their e-waste to the agency that will collect and dispose it will be much higher than they get under exchange when they buy a new product or when they sell it to a scrap vendor. According to VMC officials, besides electronic goods, even domestic appliances and batteries would be collected under the project. For big items or items in large quantities, the vendor will collect the waste from the doorstep of citizens. Smaller items will have to be delivered to the vendor. VMC IT director Manishkumar Bhatt said that the vendor will also give 12 per cent of the total collection to the civic body. Bhatt said that the disposal of waste will be certified by the Gujarat Pollution Control Board. The quantum of waste disposed will be monitored through audits to which the VMC will have an access. The civic body had brought out a tender to identify a vendor for the collection and disposal. The vendors have provided item-wise rates for each item that can be categorised as e-waste. Citizens can call the VMC's helpline number if they need to give e-waste to the civic body.