Single-use plastic banned in Chandigarh

Violation to invite up to five-year jail and fine of ₹1 lakh

The UT environment department on Friday notified immediate ban on 11 categories of single-use plastic, with provisions to imprison and fine the defaulters. The ban on seven other catergories will come into force after three months (see box).

The notification has been issued under the provisions of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. Earlier, according to a UT notification in 2008 and the National Green Tribunal (NGT) order in 2015, using, storing, purchasing, dealing with or distributing plastic bags, plates, glasses and such allied items were banned.

Elaborating on the present notification, Debendra Dalai, director, environment, said: “Plastic items that are not used multiple times (use and throw) have been banned.”

Who all will be impacted

All users, manufacturers and sellers of single-use plastic items will come under the ambit of ban. As per the notification, “No person including a shopkeeper, vendor, wholeseller or retailer, trader, hawker or rehriwala etc. shall manufacture, store, import, sell, transport, supply or use single-use plastic/thermocol/styrofoam items.”

“The current ban on plastic carry bags, plates, etc, will be extended immediately to 11 single-use plastic items, and in three months to another seven single-use plastic items,” said Dalai.

Officials of the environment, health, food and supply departments and municipal corporation will implement the ban, he said.

Charanjiv Singh, chairman, Chandigarh Beopar Mandal, said: “We welcome the ban on single-use items. However, we had requested the administration to allow plastic carry bags with thickness above 50 microns, as these can be used multiple times. Their inclusion in the banned items comes as a disappointment.”

Micron is a unit of length equal to one millionth of a metre.

Meanwhile, Paveela Bali, a city-based environmentalist, said: “Single-use items should have been banned in 2008 when the first notification on banning plastic was issues. Though late, it is a welcome step.”