Assam bans use of poly-bags

The police have in fact registered several cases of use of polythene bags by shopkeepers, while the public in general have welcomed the move, keeping the growing environmental problems of Guwahati in check.

The ban order said the authorities were prompted to take this drastic action in view of voices raised by NGOs, environmentalists as well as social action groups that increased use of polythene was polluting the city and causingirreparable damage.

“The Guwahati municipal corporation too complained that used polythene carry bags were adding to congestion of the city’s drains leading to artificial floods during the rains,” said D N Saikia, deputy commissioner, Kamrup.

But even as the ban came into effect from June 5, also world environment day, a group of entrepreneurs led by wing commander (retd) Utpal Barbara, filed a case in the Guwahati high court, pleading for quashing the ban order.

According to the petitioners, they had set up polythene recycling units in the city after duly obtaining no-objection certificates from the Assam state pollution control board, directorate of industries as well as the municipal corporation. Now that the district magistrate has imposed a ban on use of polythene items, it has threatened to render jobless hundreds of employees engaged in these units.

The all-Assam small scale industries association (AASIA) too has joined the fray by lambasting the authorities for imposing ban on use ofpolythene bags. Association president Chiranjit Chaliha said the ban order was arbitrary and short-sighted and would adversely affect several dozen small units manufacturing polythene bags and other items.

The Kamrup district authorities however are understood to be reviewing the ban with sources saying that the polythene items would be classified according to their different use and quality. This review is said to have been prompted by the fact that the ban threatens to close down the city’s milk supply as well as the sale of various other items like salt, and even saline and blood, all these items too coming in polythene bags these days.

Achintya Bezbaruah, a leading environmentalist on the other hand suggested that the polythene bags could be classified according to their grades, so that food-grade plastics used for vacuum packing of food products like milk, edible oil etc could be exempted. Suggestions have also poured in to relax or modify the ban order by restricting the disposal of polythene bags.