E-Paper
MC official leading team to ban plastic bags in Ludhiana transferred
The transfer order, issued on July 30, was received on Friday, while Sekhon was away to Prayagraj (Allahabad) on an official visit to study solid waste management
Ludhiana Municipal corporation (MC) secretary Jasdev Sekhon has been transferred to the Abohar MC by the Punjab local bodies department.
The transfer order, issued on July 30, was received on Friday, while Sekhon was away to Prayagraj (Allahabad) on an official visit to study solid waste management.
Notably, Sekhon is in-charge of the 13-member MC team that has been confiscating plastic carry bags as part of a drive started on August 2. He was transferred to the Ludhiana MC from Hoshiarpur in August 2019.
Under the Solid Waste Management and Cleanliness and Sanitation Bylaws, 2020, MC has banned the use of plastic carry bags in the city and a fine up to ₹20,000 can be levied for violations.
With Sekhon getting transferred, mayor Balkar Singh Sandhu said the drive against plastic ban will continue and another official will be deputed to lead the team.
He said he had no information why the transfer order was issued and the decision had been taken at the state level.
When contacted, Sekhon also denied having any information regarding the reason behind his transfer and said he will follow the orders following his return from Prayagraj.
After the drive began on Monday, MC team confiscated over 12.25 quintals of banned plastic bags till Tuesday and issued fines worth ₹2 lakh to violators. No raids were conducted after Wednesday due to rainfall in the city and Sekhon then left for Prayagraj on Thursday.
While the ban on plastic bags is in place across Punjab since April 2016, MC has so far been unable to rid the city of their use, primarily due to resistance from the plastic industry and political interference.
On Wednesday, a group of plastic industry representatives had also met the mayor seeking permission to manufacture and sell plastic bags with thickness of 50 micron and above, as a complete ban will destroy the industry, which is already reeling under losses due to the pandemic.
