Civic body cracks down on single-use plastic, unlicensed traders & littering

The Amritsar Municipal Corporation has taken strict action against prominent establishments, including Novelty Sweets and Heera Paneer, for using single-use plastic, littering and failing to obtain trade licences.

Under the directions of Municipal Commissioner Bikramjit Singh Shergill, Health Department officials held a review meeting on Wednesday to strengthen the city’s sanitation management. The MC Commissioner instructed officials to identify and act against those who repeatedly violate waste disposal norms, using banned plastic items or running businesses without trade licences. Teams from the Health and Estate Departments were directed to jointly issue notices under the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, and to initiate action against defaulters after two prior warnings.

Following these instructions, a team of the North Zone Health Department conducted inspections at some shops along the Lawrence Road and issued notices to Novelty Sweets and Heera Paneer. Around 27 kg of single-use plastic was seized from Novelty Sweets and 5 kg from Heera Paneer. Additionally, a challan (fine) was imposed on Heera Paneer for spreading filth in the area.

The MC Commissioner appealed to the residents and shopkeepers of Amritsar to cooperate with the civic body in maintaining cleanliness. He emphasised that Amritsar, being a historic and sacred city, requires collective responsibility for its upkeep. Citizens were urged not to dump garbage on roads or streets but to use dustbins at homes, shops and stalls so that municipal vehicles can collect waste efficiently. He also urged residents to refrain from using single-use plastic, which often leads to sewer blockages and environmental hazards.

Meanwhile, teams from different zones of the Health Department, in collaboration with the estate wing, carried out awareness and inspection drives across the city.

In the West Zone, under the supervision of Health Officer Dr Rama, Sanitary Inspectors Ashok Kumar and Brahmdas inspected shops and roadside vendors along Chheharta Road, advising them to stop using single-use plastics and to install dustbins for proper waste disposal. They were warned that further violations would attract strict legal action.

Similarly, the North Zone team along with Estate Department officials inspected Court Road and advised fruit vendors to maintain cleanliness and avoid banned plastic use. In another operation, under the direction of Dr Kiran, Chief Sanitary Inspector Vijay Gill and Sanitary Inspector Sanjeev Arora issued first warnings to traders at IDH Market to dispose of their waste responsibly and discontinue plastic use.