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There is a downside to technologies such as electronic or e-waste.

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Thousands of tons of obsolete computers and electronic appliances are piling up in cities around India.

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Andrew Stevens looks at what's being done in the country's hi-tech hub, Bangalore, 

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to deal with potentially serious health and environmental dangers.

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A low-tech end for a high-tech product.

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In a warehouse in Bangalore, these women break down obsolete computers.

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This operation follows local government safety regulations, 

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but, for the vast majority of people who recycle electronic waste in India, it's a dirty and dangerous business.

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Greenpeace has targeted electronic waste as one of India's biggest environmental issues.

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It's not just Bangalore.

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This video, Greenpeace says it shot recently, shows piles of e-waste in the capital, New Delhi --

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they produce toxic smoke and leak poisons and heavy metals into the ground -- and workers with no safety equipment.

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Thousands of tons of IT-related e-waste are produced in India every year.

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Thousands of tons more are coming in, being dumped in India, say Greenpeace.

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Most of it is broken down and resold. And this is the most valuable part of the computer, the motherboard,

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and it's pretty easy to see why: gold or gold plating.

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But extracting the gold from these motherboards is also the most dangerous part of the entire process.

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Computer components including motherboards are sold at markets like this Sunday bazaar in Bangalore.

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The buyers [are] often the next link in the recycling chain -- 

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small family operators whose livelihood is extracting the valuable metals.

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But it's a crude process, 

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circuit boards are boiled or cooked using highly toxic chemicals, including sulfuric and nitric acid and cyanide.

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As yet, there's no clear national policy on e-waste.

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At the state level, officials can see that's a problem they are looking at. Small steps are being taken.

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In Bangalore, entrepreneur P. Pataserati has got a license to begin a legitimate e-waste operation.

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It's small-scale, using basic tools and equipment.

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Circuit boards are pulverized and metals are extracted from the powder in a sealed environment.

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All waste products go to secure landfill areas. But this operation processes just 700 tons of waste a year.

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Bangalore alone generates about 6,000 tons a year.

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It's the flip side of the IT revolution, and for India, it's become an environmental problem that grows bigger each day.