Plastic bottles below 1-litre capacity banned in Assam

 STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Following the Cabinet decision taken on July 21 this year, the State Environment and Forest Department has prohibited the use of plastic water bottles below one-litre capacity in the state from October 2, 2023.

Single-use plastic (SUP) items with very high littering potential cause short-term and long-term environmental damage and pose health hazards.

Article 48-A of the Constitution of India, inter alia, envisages that the state shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment. The Government of India in the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change notified the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 under the Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986 (Act 29 of 1986) through a notification on March 18, 2016, restricting the use of certain plastic carry bags and containers and their management. The Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change, through a notification issued on August 12, 2021, further notified the Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2021, prohibiting the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale, and use of various SUPs, as mentioned in subrule (2) of rule 4 of the said rule, with effect from July 1, 2022.

The banned SUP items are (a) ear buds with plastic sticks, plastic sticks for balloons, plastic flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, polystyrene [thermocol] for decoration, etc. (b) plastic plates, cups, glasses, cutlery such as forks, spoons, knives, straws, trays, wrapping or packing films around sweet boxes, invitation cards, and cigarette packets; (c) plastic carry bags less than seventy-five microns in thickness with effect from September 3, 2021; and less than one hundred and twenty (120) microns in thickness with effect from December 31, 2022.

The government observed that plastic bottles for packaging drinking water have not been included in the list of banned SUP by the Government of India in the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, as amended in 2021.

It was observed that the use of packaged drinking water bottles up to 1000 ml volume and their pollution potential are higher than packaged drinking water bottles of larger volume.

Thus, it prompted the state government to prohibit the use, manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale, and use of plastic water bottles below 1000 ml capacity in the state. The implementation of the provisions of the notification shall vest in urban and rural local bodies, district administration, the police department, and the Pollution Control Board, Assam.

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