Plastic ban violation in Delhi to be penalised

The Delhi government will issue warning notices to units found violating the ban on 19 identified single-use plastic items till 10 July. Thereafter, punitive action will be taken against repeat offenders. This may include a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh or a jail term of up to five years, the government has announced.

01 Jul 2022 | By Rahul Kumar

The government will issue warning notices till 10 July

The Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) had earlier issued strict directions to manufacturers, stockists, suppliers and distributors of single-use plastic items to ensure zero inventory of the banned commodities, including packaging films and plastic cutlery, by 30 June.

Meanwhile, teams of the DPCC, the revenue department and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) will conduct inspections, create awareness and issue warning notices against those not complying with the ban till 10 July.

Delhi generates 1,060 tonnes of plastic waste per day. Single-use plastic is estimated to be 5.6% (or 56-kg per metric tonnes) of the total solid waste in the capital.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), plastic waste generation in the country in 2020-21 was 41,26,997 tonnes, while per capita waste generation was 3-kg per annum. 

There are 683 units manufacturing single-use plastic with a cumulative capacity of 2.44 lakh per annum. The CPCB has already revoked or modified the consent of 433 units.

According to CPCB, the characterisation of plastic waste in 18 cities has found that the percentage of single-use plastic in total plastic waste is between 10 and 35%.

On 12 August 2021, the Union Environment Ministry had issued a notification prohibiting the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of identified single-use plastic commodities, including polystyrene and expanded polystyrene, from 1 July.

The use of these items by consumers is also banned. But the penalties are unlikely to be transferred to the consumer.

The identified single-use plastic items include earbuds, plastic sticks for balloons, flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, polystyrene (thermocol), plates, cups, glasses, forks, spoons, knives, straws, trays, wrapping or packaging films around sweets boxes, invitation cards, cigarette packets, plastic or PVC banners of less than 100 microns, and stirrers.

The thickness of plastic carry bags will have to be increased from 75 microns to 120 microns from 31 December.

(Courtesy PTI)