Plastic ban: HC allows de-sealing of shops in hill stations on undertaking

The Madras High Court on Friday directed the revenue authorities to remove the seals put on shops for selling banned plastic items in The Nilgiris and Kodaikanal. A division bench comprising Justice V Bharathidasan and Justice N Sathish Kumar passed the direction on hearing petitions related to the forest, wildlife and elephant protection in the Western Ghats. “Considering the fact that the closed shops belong to petty shopkeepers eking out their livelihood from the meagre income from the shops, we are inclined to permit the authorities to remove the lock and seal, after obtaining an undertaking from the shop owners that they will not sell the banned plastic items again,” the judges ruled.