Prime Minister Modi had announced on Independence Day this year that single use plastic items, including bottled water, plates, spoons etc., would be banned from October 2. Now the Government is adopting a flip-flop stance about the blanket ban on the plea that this would be too disruptive for industry at a time when it is coping with an economic slowdown and job losses. Initially, the plan was that the Prime Minister would impose a ban on six plastic items on the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, as part of a broader campaign to rid India of single-use plastics by 2022. But now it is learnt that there would be no immediate move to ban plastic bags, cups, plates, small bottles, straws and certain types of sachets. Instead the Government would try to curb their use.
The operative word now is that Government will ask states to enforce existing rules against storing, manufacturing and using some single-use plastic products such as polythene bags and Styrofoam. So instead of a complete ban on plastics the step taken is to create public awareness on the ill-effects of plastic and the need to ensure a better collection regime so that there is no littering and plastics can be sent for recycling. Mr Modi has the habit making impulsive public announcements which are not backed by action. If the Government wants to support the plastic manufacturing industry despite the enormous environmental pollution and the slow death of rivers and oceans, then even the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan becomes mere lip service because today plastics are the number one pollutant. According to research, only a small fraction of used plastics are actually recycled; the rest end up in rivers and landfills that have now become mountains that defy solution.
Some states have, however, banned plastics much before Mr Modi could open his mouth. Sikkim is one such state and Maharashtra is the other. The Maharashtra government has notified the ban on categories of plastic and thermocol including less than 200 ml drinking water PET bottles, plastic bags for shopping, disposable thermocol cups, plates and straws. Each state should in fact make its own decision since it is the state government that has to handle the hazards of plastic waste. The Mumbai floods and water-logging are due to plastic clogged drains which has caused much heartache to Mumbaikars. It is only fair that the state government takes the call!
Coming to Meghalaya, the story is the same. Most plastics end up in rivers, streams and drains and at the landfills that have exceeded their capacities to handle the waste. It is important that people themselves decide to save their environment by calling for a blanket ban on single use plastic items.