The BBMP continues to go ho-hum on the issue of banning the use of non-biodegradable plastic, but the residents of HSR Layout are having none of it. They are leading the charge, telling shops in the area to quit the habit and shift to paper bags.
While the state government is still mulling over the idea of enforcing a ban on plastic, the residents of HSR Layout (Sector 1-6) have decided to go ahead and lead the way. Starting from January 1, members of various resident welfare associations, resident activists and NGOs have started knocking on the doors of commercial establishments, urging them not to use plastic. In order to enforce the ban stringently, a BBMP notification has been issued to all the shops in HSR Layout, directing them not to use plastic.
In the coming weeks, the BBMP will levy a penalty on shops which are not using alternative bags instead of plastic, said Muniraju, Jt Commissioner (Bommanahalli zone). He said, “On a pilot project basis, the BBMP has mandated that all the commercial establishments must stop the use of plastic handbags before January 16. In order to help both citizens and shopkeepers, the BBMP has set up a stall in which bags of different sizes are being sold.”
While residents can buy different bags for vegetables, groceries and grains, the shopkeepers can buy paper bags at subsidized rates of Rs 6, Rs 9 and Rs 11. He added, “There are 18,000 houses in the six sectors, and we have sold about 6,000 bags already. About 2,000 bags were given away free to residents in association with the NGO ITC.” Though the volunteers are aggressively trying to promote the ban on plastic, there has been a mixed response in the first week, observed Kavita Reddy, an activist.
Read | ‘We will try to replicate it in other areas’
“Many residents have understood the importance of garbage management and the role of plastic in dealing with the garbage menace. But adopting changes is not easy. We are focusing on commercial establishments now and will follow it up with residents in the next stage. We need more time to bring about a 100 per cent change,” she added.
Meanwhile, Brig Murthy, President, HSR Layout (Second Sector) Residents’ Welfare Association, remarked that people’s co-operation with the ban was crucial to make it successful and in the prelude to a complete ban, there were a few initial hiccups.
“Every locality will have some difficult residents who don’t always obey rules. Sometimes, people don’t change until there’s an authority enforcing rules. However, this time, the BBMP has joined hands with us and it’s a big move. Since everybody knows plastic use is not allowed, many are switching over to paper bags,” he added.
... But the Union govt wants plastic for highways
At a time when experts, environmentalists and RWAs have condemned the use of plastic, the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has issued a notification in November last year, directing the use of plastic waste in bituminous mixes for better roads.
The notification says, “Studies have revealed that use of waste plastic improves the desirable properties of bituminous mixes leading to improved longevity and pavement performance. Therefore, the Ministry has decided to encourage the use of plastic waste in the hot mix bituminous wearing coat.
Accordingly it has been decided that bituminous mix with waste plastic shall be the default mode for periodic renewal with hot mixes, within a 50 km periphery of urban area having a population of more than 5 lakhs.” However, with the state government wanting to ban plastic, there will be no sufficient plastic available says Rasool Khan of KK Plastic Ltd, who built the country’s first road using plastic waste. He added, “Plastic of any micron is a menace, no doubt. But when right methods are adopted, no plastic is a burden. As much as 10,000 tonnes of plastic can be utilized across the state for building long-lasting roads. But the state government has to wake up to the need of plastic before it enforces a ban.”
Mr Khan said that the KSPCB had expressed an interest in mandating the use of plastic in the making of roads. “We hope the agencies will understand the role of plastic in building roads and not completely ban plastic,” he added.
Challenges to curb low quality plastic
Among various challenges before the state government to impose blanket ban on use of plastic, curbing the movement of less than 40 microns plastic within the city has been toughest.
Despite several crackdowns, the BBMP has been unable to curb the production of sub-standard plastic. While BBMP officials maintain that there will be supply as long as there is demand, Mayor Manjunath Reddy highlighted that illegal imports of sub-standard plastic from other states was tough to handle.
“We are constantly on the lookout for units manufacturing plastic less than 40 microns. In a bid to escape our eyes, some manufacturers bring low quality plastic from Tamil Nadu and other states. When the government order on plastic ban is implemented in full force, we will further intensify our drive against plastic units and ensure that no low quality plastic available in the market,” he said.
While officials are cracking down on these units, a top official revealed that there was severe pressure on the officials not to levy penalty on less than 40 microns plastic manufacturers. “The officials are being questioned why the penalty is so high and what is the need to penalize the manufacturers. It's unfortunate that some people within the system don’t want curb the production of low plastic,” the official said.
Meanwhile, another official added that the easy availability and low cost of cheap plastic was the biggest hindrance to enforce ban on plastic. The official said, “Most of the citizens do not understand the long term consequences of high use of plastic and they are not even interested in understanding how bad plastic is. Though a small minority understand the problems of plastic and are discussing it, the majority of the population are out of the purview of this understanding. There’s a need to make the latter understand the problems.”
