Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the members of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), announcing the restoration of degraded land and the end of single-use plastic by the year 2022. He asked for the assembly to turn their attention towards the impact of plastic on the productivity of land, urging present members of the assembly to take into account the impact plastic waste has on both land and the climate.
Watch | "Time has come for the world to say goodbye to single-use plastic": PM Modi at #UNCCDCOP14
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The nation-wide ban on plastic bags, cups and straws is scheduled to take effect in line with the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, on October 2nd 2019 as reported by India Times. This ban on single-use plastic is said to be rather comprehensive and is expected to cover all manufacturing, usage and import of the same in all industries including hospitality and tourism.
What is Single-Use Plastic?
The General understanding of single-use plastic is all packaging products such as carry bags, bottled drinks, straws, containers, cutlery, food packaging, decorative plastic and basically anything that is ordinarily used once and then thrown out.
Hiten Bheda, chairman of the Environment Committee of the All India Plastic Manufacturers Association stated “India’s plastic industry recorded an annual revenue worth Rs. 3.5 lakh crore in the Financial Year 2019, becoming the fastest-growing industry in India as it sees its fortunes linked to the growth of every other industry”. With industries like hospitality and restaurants as well as consumer appliances, e-commerce, depending heavily on single-use plastic for product delivery, demand for plastic alternatives are going to be extensive.
Also Read: A Guide To Zero Waste Travel And How To Pack For It
Places where single-use plastic are already banned:
The Indian Railways, Taj Mahal and Amazon India are becoming single-use plastic free, as well states such as Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Nepali Authorities at the Everest are not far behind in implementing the same. But with the new national campaign being launched on 2nd October 2019, the Indian government is aiming to be single-use plastic free by the year 2022.
