The decision of municipalities in Goa, including that of the Corporation of the City of Panaji, to start charging shopkeepers who sell or dispense plastic bags with a thickness greater than 50 microns, an annual fees of Rs 48,000, has not gone down well with the traders, who find the fee too high. Traders in Panjim, Margao and Mapusa have opposed it, all claiming that Rs 48,000 a year is too high and it will affect their profit margin. Their contention is that the fee should be minimal and in the interest of the small traders and shops.
The law, however, and the fee, in this case, is justifiably in the interest of the environment, and there would be many from the pro-environment brigade who would argue that the amount is too small. But, if Rs 48,000 per annum is viewed as high, and beyond the scope of the small traders, it is precisely because the government wants to discourage the use of plastic by making it difficult and economically unviable for the traders to use plastic. If the fee, as demanded by the traders is minimal and in their interest, the use of plastic will never end, and the environment will continue to be choked by this non-biodegradable material. The good news is that plastic below that is banned.
What is now required is enforcement from the authorities, and also sensitivity on the part of the shoppers. In the case of the former, will the authorities take action on shopkeepers and vendors who have not registered under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1996 and still continue selling goods in plastic bags? The punishment under the Act could include imprisonment of five years and fine extending up to Rs 1 lakh or both, and in case the failure or contravention continues, an additional fine of Rs 5000 will be levied daily. Will the authorities strictly enforce this?
Where the sensitivity of the shopper is concerned, it shouldn’t be difficult for shoppers to make it a habit to carry a bag with them – made up of cloth or jute or any other biodegradable material that is reusable – when they go shopping, instead of relying on the flimsy material that is given by the traders, which ends up as the biggest culprit of the plastic pollution as its thinness ensures it has no reuse value.
It has taken Goa quite a long time to reach this stage in its battle against the indiscriminate use of plastic. On the last Liberation Day, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar had announced that there would be a complete ban on plastic in the State from May 30 this year. He had added that the announcement was being made in advance so that those who are in the business of making, selling, trading plastic have ample time to make necessary changes in the business and not complain at the last minute. A few days later, in the New Year, the Chief Minister had said the polyvinyl chloride-based plastic bags, the type used to package milk, would be banned by December 19 this year.
Six months earlier, the Chief Minister had announced that trade in bags below 50 microns would be stopped from July 2017, and initially those buying or selling the banned bags will be fined Rs 500 and the fine will subsequently be increased to Rs 5000. The statement saw little action forthcoming, leading to plastic bags being used indiscriminately in the State. But this time the decisions of the municipalities cannot be reversed, as it is mandatory and comes with directives from the Centre.
Plastic, one has to remember, is not biodegradable and can remain in the environment for decades, with a plastic bag remaining up to 80 years, causing tremendous damage to the environment. So next time one goes shopping, why not carry a bag to bring back the shopping in?
