by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group
Lokmat Exclusive Report
Plastic Ban: Big headache for Govt.
12 Single use plastic items identified
Plastic bottles may be spared
Harish Gupta
New Delhi, Sep 13
The government is understood to have drawn a list of 12 items under the “Single use plastic category” to be banned from October 2.
The Prime Minister has set up a Committee of Secretaries (CoS) under Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba which has drawn the list and consulting various ministries. The Consumer Affairs, Environment, Urban Affairs, Law, Health, Drinking water & Sanitation etc are part of this exercise.
Plastic bags below 50 micron, plastic plates including those made of plastic & thermocol, plastic cups, glasses, spoon cutlery, etc fall in this category.
Highly placed sources in the government say plastic water bottles may not be included in the banned list for now. Ever since the PM gave a clarion call from the ramparts of the Red Fort on August 15 to ban single use plastic, the ministers and bureaucrats are racing against time to implement the order.
It transpires that the PM made the announcement after Parmeshwaran Iyer, Secretary in the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation submitted a note suggesting ban on Single Use plastic immediately. The government was told by various departments and ministries that water bottle industry alone in the country is worth Rs 40000 crores. The size of the plastic industry as a whole is over Rs seven lakh crores. The economy is already facing a slow down.
It was in this background that there is a climb down from “Ban plastic” to “Give up plastic” and that too single use plastic. Even the list of single use plastic is drastically pruned so that the industry is not badly affected. The Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan is holding a series of meetings with the stakeholders in this regard to evolve a meeting ground before October 2 when the ban on these items will kick in.
It is learnt that if the Central government will ban the single use plastic on 12 items, a new law would required and modalies will have to be worked out as this is a state subject.
ends
