Plastic consumed by cattle: SC asks Centre to set up committee

The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Centre to constitute a committee for implementing environment protection laws and consider prohibiting the use, sale and disposal of plastic bags that are consumed by stray cattle, making them suffer and die a painful death.

A Bench of Justices V Gopala Gowda and Adarsh Kumar Goel said the issue was not adversarial litigation and asked the petitioner and other parties to give suggestions to the committee to be constituted by the Centre. It also directed that the Committee should consider the suggestions of states, union territories and Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) and prayers in PIL filed by NGO Karuna Society for Animals and Nature for ensuring implementation of the rules framed under the Environment (Protection) Act.

The Apex Court, while disposing of the plea, said the committee would also monitor implementation of the law and of the suggestions given by different stakeholders.

During the hearing, counsel for the NGO said stray cattle that are left to fend for themselves, ate out of the garbage mounds and ingested huge amounts of plastic in the process.