New Delhi: Reiterating the government’s commitment to phase out identified single-use plastic items which have low utility and high adverse environmental impact, Union Environment Minister, Prakash Javadekar today said that though plastic, was a useful 20th-century innovation, however, uncollected plastic waste has emerged as a serious threat to the environment.
“Considering the adverse impacts of littered single-use plastic items on both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi gave a clarion call to phase out single-use plastics by 2022, and the government has taken effective measures to manage plastic waste,” said Javadekar.
The Environment Minister emphasized that the Government of India has already banned the import of plastic waste in the country. The minister further recalled that the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change for the first time brought out Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, for handling plastic waste in an environmentally sound manner.
“Under the rules plastic carry bags below 50 microns have been banned. Many states/UTs have also banned identified single-use plastic items. Further, the Ministry has issued a draft notification in March 2021 for amending the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, with respect to prohibiting identified 12 single-use plastic items such as disposable plastic cutlery, etc.”, stated Javadekar
Stressing the importance of public participation in the elimination of single-use plastic items, the Environment Minister said that awareness generation on plastic waste management and reduction in the use of single-use plastic items is vital in bringing about behavioral change.
With this mission, the minister launched a two-month awareness generation campaign on plastic waste management and the elimination of identified single-use plastic items.
