The ban will out a check on the use of one-time use plastic, such as cups, glass, polythene bags -- all a source of irreversible ocean pollution.
UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath issued an order today to all local authorities to ban the use of plastic — plastic cups, glass and polythene bags — in the state. The order comes into effect from July 15.
According to an official of Noida Authority, the Authority regularly conducts drive against the use of plastic in markets. “So many vendors have been fined due to use of plastic bags, but people of Noida should step up and refuse to use plastic on their own,” he added.
An official of Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board claims that in Gautam Budh Nagar, the manufacture of plastic material has been drastically brought down and people are also slowly getting used to using paper or jute bags.
This is, however, not the first time that UP government has decided to ban plastic use in the state. Before the BJP rule, Akhilesh-led government, too, had announced a ban on distribution, production and use of plastic bags in 2015 in the state following an Allahabad High Court order.
However, Noida authority and GB Nagar district administration have failed to enforce the ban and have not penalised offenders — something that residents agree upon.
“During bhandaras [religious gatherings where communal food is serve], people are offered food and prasad in plastic cups and plates. That plastic is then quite callously discarded on the roads — how come the authorities have still not checked this practice,” complained a resident, Sunita Sharma.
