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Despite raids, suppliers smuggle plastics
Illegal manufacturers and wholesalers continue to supply banned plastics using different methods to evade detection.
By
migrator
migrator
Chennai
The continuous raids and even fines collected by the Chennai Corporation do not seem to be deterrent from using single-use plastics that were banned in the State from January 1. While officials say it requires dedicated teams for undertaking raids, traders point out that it needs a coordinated effort, including similarly cheaper alternatives and reducing tax on them, for it to be effective.
Last Friday alone, the civic body raided 955 shops and collected Rs. 5.43 lakh in fines. But traders say they are unable to get rid of plastic carry bags as there are no cheap and easily available alternatives.
“Our association has been imploring traders to not to use the banned items. Big shops have stopped using the banned items, but not the small traders and street vendors. As of now, there are no suitable alternatives for single-use plastics. Also, taxes should be slashed on the alternative products,” said AM Vikramaraja, president of Tamil Nadu Vanigar Sangangalin Peramaippu.
Even he said officials should take action against those brining the banned items into the city. However, he added that without a country-wide ban, it was not possible to control their use.
Vikramaraja also pointed out the government’s inaction against sachets, alleging that they were clogging the drainage system and waterways.
Need separate teams for search and seizure
Some of the field-level officials confided that they could not effectively implement the ban due to several other works, as the Chennai Corporation failed to constitute separate teams to conduct raids.
“During the raids, we realised that a huge quantity of plastic carry bags is being used in major markets, including the Koyambedu market and Kasimedu fish market. Dedicated teams should be constituted to keep extra vigil on the plastic usage in those markets,” an official said.
Though it has been more than seven months since the ban came into effect, confusions over the banned plastic persist in the absence of any clarification. One example is the unchecked usage of non-woven polypropylene carry bags which are often mistaken for cloth bags. Some shop owners even charge for these like how the supermarkets do forcloth bags.
“When I went to buy vegetables, the shop owner charged me Rs 5 for a non-woven polypropylene carry bag. Though I know that it is one of the banned items, I have no option other than buying the bag to carry vegetables,” said A Selvam, a resident of Kodambakkam.
When asked, the field official admitted that they were given sufficient training on the banned items, and added they also seized non-woven polypropylene bags along with plastic carry bags.
Rs 45 lakh collected in fines
Since June 24, the day the civic body started to levy penalty, the Greater Chennai Corporation has collected more than Rs 45.21 lakh penalty from traders till July 31. During this period, ward-level teams had raided 2,39,121 shops in 15 zones and seized more than 262 tonnes of banned plastic items. About one-fifth of the seizure (52 tonnes) was from Kodambakkam zone alone, under which falls the shopping hub, T Nagar.
Code numbers used to sell plastic
To beat the ban, some unregistered plastic manufacturers are using code numbers to sell the banned items in the market, said Virendra Kumar, president of Tamil Nadu Plastic Manufacturers’ Association (TAPMA). “Several illegal wholesalers are hoarding the banned plastics produced by unregistered manufacturers. But these manufacturers are wary enough not to supply these to unknown persons. So they assign codes to known customers,” he said. Explaining the modus operandi, he said manufacturers and wholesalers would appoint middlemen to deal with the banned items. The middlemen would be given code numbers, which should be given to take delivery. “Several shops in Tana Street and Periamet are functioning like this,” he added. According to Virendra Kumar, while more than 200 registered plastic manufacturing units in the State have shut down after the ban, there are several unregistered manufacturers besides those bringing them from other States.
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