Carrying plastic carry bags of thickness less than 50 microns would have landed one in trouble in Kochi, if a suggestion from the health standing committee of the civic body to that effect had been approved.
Though a proposal for slapping fines ranging between ₹100 and ₹5,000 on those found carrying the banned plastic bags had come up for consideration, the Kochi Corporation Council recently shot down the proposal.
Opposition
It was while incorporating the fine component in the bylaw enacted by the Kochi Corporation that the provisions for pulling up the general public was included. Several civic representatives, who took objection to the proposal, pointed out that the producers and sellers of such banned bags, and not the general public, should be held liable.
The council had passed a bylaw governing the use of plastic in the city limits last year to which the State authorities had suggested the inclusion of a fine component.
Mayor Soumini Jain said the suggestion to impose fines on people was unrealistic and impractical. “It doesn’t make any sense to slap a fine on a woman or a man who purchases some goods or provisions from a shop in a carry bag provided by the trader. In such cases, the onus should be on the trader and the producer, not the commoner,” she said.
However, V.K. Minimol, former chairperson of the health standing committee, had a different take. Under normal circumstances, the civic body might not be able to act against the producer of the banned bags due to the absence of jurisdiction. At the same time, the Corporation could act to deter residents from using the banned plastic bags by prescribing a fine, she said.
Legislation
In a couple of years, there would be legislation that would make the act of carrying such bags a punishable offence. If the civic body included such provisions in its bylaw, it would be easier for the Corporation to implement such legislation in the future, she added.
Mass movement
V.P. Chandran, the leader of the Left Democratic Front in the council, said a mass movement involving officials, civic heads and the general public was required to curb the use of banned plastic. The civic body decided to do away with the fine to be imposed on the public after it was opposed by a large number of councillors, he said.
The Corporation had also approved a suggestion to slap spot fine ranging between ₹500 and ₹25,000 on those caught dumping waste in beaches and tourism centres.
