Karnataka - Mangalore   

Manufacturers make adjustments after the ban comes into force

— PHOTO: R. ESWARRAJ

PROOF OF VIOLATION: A look at any garbage heap in Mangalore is enough proof that the ban on thin plastic carry bags is observed more in the breach.

MANGALORE: Plastic bag manufacturing units in and around the city are continuing to function by modifying the product that they produce. With the ban on use of plastic bags below the defined thickness taking effect, the required modifications have been made.

“We stopped manufacture of below 40 microns two or three months ago when the notification came,” says B.A. Nazeer, Plastic Manufacturers Association, and Kanara Small Scale Industry Association (KSIA).

There are 50 plastic manufacturing units in Dakshina Kannada that employ up to 5,000 people directly and indirectly. In Mangalore, there are 25 units employing 4,000 people. There are 5,000 people who market the products. Of these, 50 to 60 per cent depend entirely on manufacture of plastic carry bags. In Karnataka, Mangalore is the next hub of plastic manufacturing after Bangalore, he says.

‘Half successful'

Mr. Nazeer says the ban on using plastic carry bags below 40 micron thickness “is successful up to 50 per cent.” Now, the plastic manufacture industry is looking forward to an amendment in the Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011, in a month's time. The amendment will define which type of plastic bags can be manufactured below the thickness of 40 microns.

Representatives of the Indian plastic industry, including the KSIA, had met Union Minister for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh, and Rajeev Gauba, Joint Secretary of MoEF, to discuss the changes, which the industry is confident will be part of the amendment.

Carry bags will mean bags made from any plastic material, used for the purpose of carrying or dispensing commodities but do not include bags that constitute or form an integral part of the packaging in which goods are sealed prior to use. Mr. Nazeer says: “For packing certain products such as coffee, tea, biscuits, and bakery products, 30 microns is accepted.”

Plastic is used for packing tablets, medicines, and industrial components. If these bags also have to be of the minimum thickness, it will lead to additional plastic waste as these bags cannot be reused, say industry representatives.

‘No alternative'

George A Pais, past president, KSIA, says: “The restriction is not necessary. If the government thinks that increasing thickness will reduce plastic waste, it is wrong. The point is that there is no alternative to plastic. How many people take cloth bags when shopping? There is rampant use of plastic... what is important is disposal,” he says.

The February 2011 Notification lays down that collection of plastic is the responsibility of the State. While industry is willing to segregate the waste, local authorities should collect plastic waste, he says. A meeting of the State-level advisory body which monitors the implementation of the rules, with due representation of the plastic industry and parties concerned, must be held immediately, he says. “To start with, let the administration stop use of plastic cups in wedding halls,” he says.

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