Corpn forms teams to enforce single-use plastics ban

Even as Chief Minister MK Stalin inaugurated the Meendum Manjapai movement to reduce the usage of single-use plastic on Thursday, the Greater Chennai Corporation has formed teams to intensify plastic raids across the city. 

According to a Chennai Corporation source, teams have been formed in all 200 divisions of the civic body. The teams comprise sanitary inspectors, conservancy inspectors, and junior engineers of the divisions concerned. 

“Teams will conduct surprise checks and raids in shops and commercial establishments. The teams will seize single-use plastic items that are banned in the city,” the source said. 

After the state government banned single-use plastic items in 2019, the Chennai Corporation formed similar teams in all the divisions, and raids were conducted across the city. However, the outbreak of COVID-19 affected the measures against banned plastic items, which resulted in unchecked sales and usage of banned items. 

“As the government stepping up action campaign against the plastic usage, we are also going to step action against the shops selling banned plastic,” an official said. 

In 2021 alone, the civic officials raided more than 15,000 shops in the city and seized around 4,800 kilograms of single-use plastic items, and Rs 11 lakh has been collected as a penalty. Meanwhile, since the ban came into effect in 2019, more than 3.26 lakh kilograms of banned plastic items have been seized, and more than Rs 1.57 crore has been collected from shop owners as a penalty. 

It may be noted that the civic body was conducting plastic rains in selected places like the Koyambedu market to create awareness among the vendors. Recently, an awareness campaign was conducted in the market and jute bags were distributed to customers. 

Meanwhile, the central government issued a circular banning all types of plastic items less than 75 microns in October, following which the field officials have been instructed to seize plastic times that are less than 75 microns.