Shut units making single-use plastic items, demands NGO

Patiala, September 9

Members of the Action Group Against Plastic Pollution (AGAPP), an NGO, today held a protest outside the office of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) over continued use of single-use plastic products in the state.

The protesters, including doctors and farmers, alleged that despite a nationwide ban on such products, the government offices, including the PPCB, had failed to stop their manufacturing and distribution.

Navneet Bhullar, who leads the Jalandhar-based NGO, said, “There is a nationwide ban on manufacturing, use, sale and distribution of single-use-plastic. All the more, the ban has been in place since 2016 but the products continue to remain in circulation till today. Contrary to the claims of government officials, the products are being manufactured at industrial units within the state and sold and distributed with impunity.”