Plastic ban may not be a cakewalk for govt

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Bhubaneswar: Environmentalists and intellectuals have expressed doubts over successful implementation of the state government’s decision to ban polythene bags from
October 2.
They claimed that the state government has neither made adequate arrangements nor did it introduce any alternative to the plastic bags for seamless implementation of the ban order.
Expressing concern over the hazards of polythene use, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had announced the state government’s decision to ban them from Gandhi Jayanti.
Although the state government had imposed curbs on use polythene bags below 40 micron February 7, 2011, the decision remained in pen and paper only, claimed intellectuals. “The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) had directed the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) to restrict the use of polythene bags below 40 micron. The Urban Development department was the nodal agency to implement the ban order. However, use of the banned polythene bags has been rampant,” said an intellectual.
Environmentalists claim that plastic items do not get decomposed even if they are buried for 500 to 1,000 years. A survey conducted by the CPCB has pegged the per capita annual polythene use in India at 9.7 kg.
According to the survey, 15, 342 tonnes of polythene bags are used in 60 big cities in the country every day. While 9,205 tonnes of plastic bags are being recycled per day, the remaining 6, 137 tonnes are dumped hither and thither in these cities.
“Civic bodies of cities like Cuttack and Bhubaneswar in Odisha are collecting garbage to the tune of 800 tonnes a day. It is found that plastic bags constitute at least 30 per cent of the garbage. The scenario in rural areas is no different,” said an environmentalist.
It is learnt that the authorities concerned have not initiated action against any person or entity in state for using plastic bags below 40 micron in state. “The CPCB had asked the OSPCB to make coastal towns like Puri and Konark polythene-free April 22, 2013. However, the OSPCB has failed to comply with the order,” said a source familiar with
the issue.
The Odisha government has followed the footsteps of Kerala, Maharashtra and Himachal Pradesh governments to ban plastic bags. It has asked the Urban Development department to implement the ban in cities and towns while the Panchayati Raj department has been made the nodal agency to carry out the same in rural areas.
Director of environment K Murugesan said the state government has collected information from states like Kerala and Maharashtra in connection with polythene ban.
“The OSPCB is now preparing guidelines for implementation of the ban after going through the information collected from other states. The guidelines would be implemented after due approval from the Law department. The guidelines will have provisions of penalty and imprisonment for the violators,” Murugesan added.