Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation promotes use of cloth bags in place of plastic

In order to replace plastic bags with cloth bags, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation has initiated many activities around the city to encourage people to ditch the plastic; on a daily basis, ward-wise drives are carried out to distribute cloth bags to the people in public places like markets and traffic signals while also creating awareness

In order to replace plastic bags with cloth bags, the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) has initiated many activities around the city to encourage people to ditch the plastic.

The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation has initiated many activities around the city to encourage people to ditch plastic bags and instead use cloth bags. (HT PHOTO)

On a daily basis, ward-wise drives are carried out to distribute cloth bags to people in public places like markets and traffic signals while also creating awareness.

“The main intention of the initiative is to impart the knowledge of the hazards of the plastic. There is a long way to go, and consistency and continuity is what is required. Hence, we plan to continue taking such initiatives continuously throughout the year. In order to stop the use of single-use plastic by the citizens completely, a massive public awareness is needed,” said additional commissioner, Sujata Dhole.

The NMMC team also visits schools, housing societies, gardens, offices and NGOs to spread the message and make people take a pledge to protect the environment by ditching plastic. “In one of the initiatives, in order to spread message among the public in gaothans and slums, we had asked them to give us used plastic bottles and in turn take breakfast coupons that they could redeem at particular eateries. This initiative was a success as along with collecting the plastic that was then given to an NGO for recycling, the people got the message as well as food,” Dhole added.

Recently, around 1,000 cloth bags were distributed among the public at the Vashi Sector 9 market. “We are also conducting random checks at shops to find if any shopkeeper is using single-use plastic bags. If so, ₹5,000 is levied as fine,” deputy municipal commissioner and nodal officer for Swachata Abhiyan, Babasaheb Rajale, said.

The activities are being implemented under ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’ and ‘Majhi Vasundhara Abhiyan’.