Circular economy (CE) is a way to grow the economy that aims to protect the environment, cut down on pollution, and support long-term growth (5). Under this idea, resources are used more efficiently and are reused and recycled as much as possible to cut down on pollution and waste. It also involves changing how industries are organized and how resources are distributed, as well as how cities are built, how the environment is protected, how technology is used, and how social welfare is run (5). The CE would suggest a substantial end to the throw-away culture. The “make, use, throw away” cycle would no longer be used as a way to manage production. Instead, a “reuse and recycle” strategy would be used. A simple way to explain what a “circular economy” is to say that it is when “your product outputs become your resourceful inputs (16).”

The CE concept was introduced by Boulding (1). He says that the country, its natural resources, and its environment should be in balance. He introduced the term “closed spaceship economy,” in which the planet is considered as a closed-loop system. Stahel and Ready refer CE as an industrial economics where the main features emphasize on circular practices. They came up with the idea of a “loop economy” where no wastage is created during the production. It is similar to the industrial techniques used for reducing waste, creating jobs in local areas, making better use of resources, and dematerializing the industrial sector. From there, the CE gains popularity among both academic experts and industry practitioners. On the other hand, consultants have recently put out a number of reports on the subject to show customers that they know about current issues. The idea of a circular business model came back 7^° years later, thanks to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and McKinsey. They co-wrote a number of important and well-known books and articles on the subject, which helped define and popularize the idea as it is now. In the last several years, many consulting companies have all written on CE (9).

Circular economy (CE) is a young and new concept which is a very popular business idea that focuses on long-term, sustainable growth, especially in the European Union and the Nordic countries. Specifically, the EU countries, along with the governments of other developed and developing countries like China, Japan, France, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Canada, Germany, and Scandinavian states, are pushing for and putting it into practice today (15). Several governments around the world have also adopted the CE principles as a way to save energy and protect important raw materials and natural resources that cannot be replaced (20).

In Denmark’s CE, industrial aggregation has a significant role. Agglomeration, or industrial aggregation, is the process of many businesses coming together, most often in the form of a joint venture (JVSC) (7). The Kalundborg Denmark Eco-industrial Park served as an example that was carried out in Denmark and highlighted the benefits of industrial aggregation. Cement pellets that take in carbon dioxide are a great example of the “tail-to-head” model of recycling and industrial aggregation. Large construction businesses in Scotland like MacRebur are pioneering the use of pelletized recycled plastic as an alternative to bitumen and petroleum tars in the building of roads (9).

For a very long time, Germany has been one of the unquestionable leaders. Mostly legal rules, like those about landfills, incinerator emissions, and the need for producers to pack their own trash, have led to a waste management infrastructure that is technically advanced and still makes the rest of the world green with envy (6). Trash management is a big business that pays out €40 billion and employs about 2,00,000 people in 3,000 companies (14). Waste management goals and environmental consciousness have spurred separation and recycling technology. German high-tech solutions and know-how are sought worldwide (12).

In China, the idea of circular practices was approved by the State Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) in 2002, along with detailed criteria for how it should be built, planned, and run. The SEPA gave its approval to the concept along with guidelines for its design and plan of the industries and business and its operation. In 2004, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) took charge of carrying out and promoting the plan (14).

In Japan, Steady Resource Procurement, the Cost of Waste Disposal, and New Business Model are the three major forces that directly guide the CE. Japan prioritizes resource efficiency and recycling to minimize its mineral and energy imports. To make new paper, small businesses and local governments in Japan collect used paper, especially old newspapers and magazines (8). In 2013, 80% of paper trash was collected and 64% was recycled. Recycling paper reduces virgin pulp imports and commodity price volatility. Throughout the 1970s, cities fought over municipal trash disposal. In those days, city rubbish was deposited at landfills in Tokyo Bay, causing environmental pollution and garbage truck traffic. Later, cities added garbage reduction, reuse, and recycling (3R) to incineration. In 20^°years, the per capita garbage dropped from 1.6 to 0.9 tons. The Household Appliance Recycling Legislation in Japan encourages urban mining. A public–private partnership (PPP) could support waste-to-power or urban mines because they generate revenue (14).

In developing countries like India, where there are a lot of people, there is a lot of trash. However, only a small amount of this trash is processed by professionals, so the country cannot use all of its potential [Goyal et al. (2018)]. Although there has always been a culture of recycling and reusing in Indian families, the digital society finds it hard to practice. It is more important than ever to move toward a CE (4) because the economy is growing quickly, cities are getting more crowded, global warming is having an effect, and environmental damage is getting worse (19). India’s move toward a CE could lead to huge annual benefits as well as a big drop in traffic and air pollution and have a huge improvement on the growth of the country in the long run. Our ability to use resources more efficiently, use less of those that are scarce, and motivate the creation of new business and entrepreneurial ventures will all help us get there faster (10).

NITI Aayog is a think tank with the mission of ensuring sustained economic development via the implementation of numerous different programs (13). Table 1 lists the initiatives and programs started by the government to transform toward the CE. In order to solve the issues that are present in the usage of trash as a resource and to provide a viewpoint on the recycling business in India, direct actions have been taken. For instance, promoting the use of slag and fly ash that is brought by the iron and steel industry in other industries saw some level of success.

Committees chaired by ministries and including officials from different Ministries of India, subject matter experts, educationalists, and industry representatives. The committee have been constituted for 11 focal areas to develop the economies toward circular practice. A detailed plan is done by the committee to transform their core areas to a CE.