Dharmapuri People’s Forum has called for cracking the whip on the continued use of banned plastic bags that are choking water bodies and storm water drains here in the municipal limits.
In a petition to the Dharmapuri Municipality, the Forum has stated that Section 4 (C) of the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2015 banned any concern from manufacture, use or storing of plastic bags below 50 microns. However, the banned plastic bags were seen to be widely in use and in circulation by eateries, shops, outlets, and hawkers in the municipal limits.
According to the petition, the plastic bags and covers constituted the majority of the dumped garbage in water bodies and storm water drains, choking discharge and preventing rainwater harvesting. Incidentally, the Forum was instrumental in successfully reviving the Illakyampatti lake. Also, Section 11 of the Plastic Waste Management Rules, warrants that all plastic bags must bear the name and registration of the manufacturer along with the number of microns printed on them. Stating that there had been brazen flouting of norms, the Forum has called upon the Dharmapuri Municipality to enforce the Plastic Waste Management Rules, and seize the plastic bags that were currently in circulation.
