Govt mulls adoption of common charger for all devices; calls meet on Aug 17

The meeting with mobile makers and sector-specific organisations has been scheduled to assess the possibility of ending use of multiple chargers in India, reduce burden on consumers, the official said

The government is exploring the adoption of a common charger for a variety of devices, including smartphones and tablets, and has called a meeting on August 17 to discuss the issue with the industry, a senior consumer affairs ministry official said on Tuesday.

The meeting with mobile makers and sector-specific organisations has been scheduled to assess the possibility of ending the use of multiple chargers in India and reduce the burden on consumers besides preventing e-waste, the official said.

Recently, the European Union announced the adoption of a USB-C port common charging standard for small electronic devices by 2024. A similar demand is in the US as well.

"If companies can serve in Europe and the US, why cannot they do it in India? Portable electronic devices like smartphones and tablets should have a common charger," the official told PTI.

If India does not push for this change, such products might get dumped here, the official added.

Currently, consumers are forced to buy a separate charger every time they buy a new device due to incompatibility of the ports of the existing charger.