Why is there not much impact of the ban on single-use plastic

New Delhi, Sep 24: Starting July 1 this year, India had enforced a complete ban on the use of single-use plastic items across the country. While the move is to mitigate pollution due to its high littering potential, in reality, the plastic ban remains ineffective as it is still being widely used by everyone from the public to shopkeepers.

Be it Delhi, Noida or Bengaluru, plastic carry bags and plastic cutlery-spoons, straws are still being used by shopkeepers as well as customers. One can easily see their use in public places like markets and shops. Ironically, there seems to be no fear about using these items despite the ban.

It is to be noted that the pan-India ban restricts the use of earbuds with plastic sticks, plastic sticks for balloons, plastic flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, polystyrene (Thermocol) for decoration, plastic plates, cups, glasses, cutlery such as forks, spoons, knives, straw, trays, wrapping or packing films around sweet boxes, invitation cards, cigarette packets, plastic or PVC banners less than 100 micron, as well as stirrers.

Along with the above-mentioned plastic items, India prohibited the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of "plastic carry bags" having thicknesses less than seventy-five microns with effect from September 30, 2021.

One shopkeeper, who sells Chole Kulche in the Noida sector-6 and wished not to be named, told One India, "Using paper bags in place of plastic is expensive for us. We use paper envelopes of Rs 80 in a single day, while 250 gm plastic bags at Rs 40 can be used for four days."

Plastic bags and cutlery items such as spoons, forks, and straws can be easily found in Noida's sectors 18,12, 6 and other sectors. In Delhi, these ban items can be found in New Ashok Nagar and Chandni Chowk and are easily available in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad and Vaishali markets.

The other seller who sells veg biryani at Noida sector 12 said that the ban must be enforced fully. "The authority raids only small shops and collects fines for using plastic. Why don't they raid manufacturers who produce these plastic items? If the manufacturers stop producing plastic products, they will not be in the market."

When One India asked Ananya Singh, a customer buying vegetables and carrying in a plastic bag, about the ban, she said, "I use plastic bag because till now there is no proper alternative. Also, we can't buy cooked food from outside in any other bag due to spillage issues."

Some shopkeepers alleged that the ban is a source of earning money for the authority.

When asked Noida Authority officials regarding plastic use in the city, sanitary inspector Gopal Krishan Sharma said, "We are doing our best to enforce the full ban. The raids are being conducted. Fines are being collected from those who defy the plastic ban in Noida."

Sharma added that there are six teams of the health department which conduct raids in Noida. "We have distributed clothes bags to the public. We request public and shopkeepers in Noida to not use plastic," he said.

The amount of fine depends upon the quantity of plastic found at the shops.