Confusion prevails over ban on plastic in Maharashtra

Shiv Kumar

Tribune News Service

Mumbai, June 21

With just two days to go before a comprehensive ban on usage, sale and storage of single-use plastic items comes into effect, citizens and owners of small businesses are confused about items that are prohibited and those which are not.

As per the information available from the Maharashtra government, single-use cutlery like plastic spoons, plates, water bottles, etc., are banned. Also on the hit list are decorative items made of plastic and thermocol and flex banners. However, woven polypropylene bags have not been banned. Even high-quality food-grade plastic bottles is allowed.

Following pressure from organized the retail, the Maharashtra government has allowed the use of compostible plastic bags.

However, what has riled the common man is the proposal to levy fines on anyone possessing plastic bags. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has announced that its anti-plastic squad personnel would hit the streets from Saturday when the ban comes into effect. Anyone found with banned plastic items would be fined Rs 5,000 the first time.

Subsequent offences would result in fines of Rs 10,000 and Rs 25,000, respectively, according to the BMC. Members of the anti-plastic squad have been asked to note down the Aadhar numbers of violators, according to civic officials.

The Railways has also got into the act with the Central Railway announcing that it would fine any commuter found with the banned plastic items from Saturday.

Panic-stricken citizens are now calling up the ward officers of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for clarifications on what is banned and what is not. “People are asking us whether it is alright to use plastic as water-proofing material during the monsoon. Even we are confused about what is allowed and what is not,” says an official of the BMC.

While most business establishments stopped stocking carry bags handed over to customers, shops selling dairy products, oil and other liquids are still using virgin-grade plastic bags. “We are moving the Bombay High Court on Friday to exempt select items from the ban on polypropylene bags,” Viren Shah, president, Federation of Retail Traders Welfare Association (FTRWA). Shah said the law at present allows manufacturers to pack their wares in PP bags for despatch to retailers who themselves are not allowed to issue these bags to their customers.

According to Shah, the Bombay High Court had deferred the ban by three months so that an expert committee set up to study the consequences of the ban could arrive at a decision. “The committee is yet to complete its work though we are waiting for its findings,” Shah said.

Meanwhile, manufacturers of flexible packaging material have warned that the complete ban on plastic would render hundreds of people jobless. “We have already shut down our factories manufacturing plastic material. But there is no alternative packaging material available,” says Ashish Savla, who heads a packaging industries association.