MCG ill-prepared to enforce ban on plastic from July 1, say officials

The Municipal Corporation of Gurugram has not taken enough measures to refrain residents from using plastic or pressed upon them to switch to the use of other alternatives even as the ban on single-use plastic will come into effect in the city from July 1---an announcement that was made by the civic body two months ago, said officials privy to the matter on Tuesday.

Officials said the only step the municipal corporation has taken so far is that the seven squads, which were formed in March last year to slap penalties on individuals or companies using banned plastic, have now been directed to start full-time enforcement and take strict action against those violating the rule from July 1 onwards.

Depending on the weight of plastic, the offenders are either charged a minimum of ₹500 or a maximum of ₹25,000 for violating the single-use plastic ban rule.

Citing the Haryana Non-Biodegradable Garbage (Control) Act, 1988, the MCG banned the usage of single-use plastic in the city on March 1, 2021. In April this year, it reiterated this order stating that the use of plastic will be banned from July 1 onwards.

On March 21, the ministry of environment, forest and climate change issued a release banning single-use plastic across the country from July 1. On Tuesday, it issued a notification reiterating the same.

Besides circulating a few messages on social media, the MCG has not carried out any awareness campaigns on ground, said officials.

“No separate teams have been formed for spreading awareness about the upcoming ban. Teams constituted specifically for spreading awareness on sanitation or the Swachh Bharat Mission sometimes mention the plastic ban in passing. We are yet to start any full-fledged awareness campaign informing people about the ban on the usage of single-use plastic,” said a senior MCG official privy to the matter.

The official also said the MCG held a meeting only with disposable plastic companies on Tuesday regarding the upcoming ban.

“Disposable plastic companies are the ones, which will be directly impacted by this ban. This meeting should have taken place in April itself when the MCG decided to reimpose the ban. This would have given the companies ample time to prepare while some of them could have switched to the manufacturing of alternatives of plastic,” said the official adding that this serves as one of the many examples of MCG’s lack of preparedness.

The MCG first announced plastic ban in the city in 2015. Since then, the trend has been that it fines shopkeepers in a few localities for using plastic during enforcement drives but little to nothing happens otherwise, said officials.

Civic officials said even the latest enforcement of the plastic ban is likely to last for a few weeks before workers in the team are deployed for other enforcement measures against illegal advertising or encroachments.

“There are no long term plans or vision in place. The only thing decided so far is that the MCG will again start slapping a fine on those using single-use plastic. Once cases of vector-borne diseases start emerging or any other week-long drives for illegal advertisements or encroachments start, the enforcement on plastic ban will gradually lose steam. This has been the case in the past as well,” said a senior MCG official in the enforcement wing.

Suneel Pandey, director of the environment and waste management division at TERI School of Advanced Studies, said lack of awareness on plastic ban and provisions of alternatives means that the latest exercise is likely to fail.

“If residents and companies aren’t aware of the single-use plastic ban in Gurugram, then enforcement can only have a momentary impact. To bring about a behavioural change, awareness in the form of street plays, social media messages, and public announcements about the plastic ban is vital,” said Pandey.

He added that the MCG should have provided some form of alternatives for single-use plastic as it may have motivated some residents to make the switch.

Subhash Yadav, nodal officer of environment and sustainability wing, MCG, said, “We have already carried out awareness programmes in April through various newspapers and social media. Residents, traders, and companies have been given ample time... From next month, we will start another series of awareness programmes on alternatives to single-use plastic.”