Kolkata: With the plastic menace becoming a 'ticking time bomb' for both the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and the residents of this city, Mayor Firhad Hakim proposed to ban the use of plastic carry bags of 50 microns.
Hakim held a meeting on Thursday with representatives of the plastic Association and the West Bengal Pollution Control Board. He said that plastic carry bags often clog the underground sewer lines resulting in waterlogging in the city. Senior officials of the KMC's Sewerage and Drainage department added that the plastic bags often cause damage to the pumps that are used to clear the accumulated water from roads. He said a policy imposing restrictions on plastic bags was needed before the monsoon season.
He further maintained that he had requested the WBPCB to issue a notification allowing plastic carry bags with 100 microns. He said that there was no company to recycle plastic products and said he would take up the matter with the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and Textiles department to explore the possibility of setting up such units.
The civic bodies often conduct various drives against the use of plastic carry bags in different markets.
A senior official of the WBPCB said that despite awareness drives, few shops were using paper bags. He maintained that unless the buyers are aware, shop-owners will continue to use plastic carry bags.
A ban will also be imposed on plates and glasses made of thermocol. There has been rampant use of thermocol glasses and plates in social gatherings. Hakim said after using them, people have a tendency to throw them in the open. "We will have to change our habits or else the attempt to make the city a clean and green one will be in vain," he said.