No to polythene bag campaign' seems to have become an occasional photo opportunity event for the Nainital district administration. With the use of polythene bags going on unabated in the district, the Nainital district administration seems to have badly failed to comply with the High Court of Uttarakhand’s direction to strictly ban the use of polythene bags in the district.
The High Court of Uttarakhand had in its order on November 4 called for a total ban on the use of polythene bags and asked the officials concerned to slap a fine of `500 for every polythene bag recovered from a shop or elsewhere in the district.
Acting on the court’s order on the matter, the Nainital district administration launched a ‘no to plastic bag campaign’ and claimed to have recovered a huge number of polythene bags from some shopping malls here in Haldwani last week.
However, with no concrete follow-up visible on the ground in compliance with the court’s order, use of polythene bags continues in different parts of the district, including Haldwani, making it difficult for the civic authorities concerned to ensure smooth disposal of municipal wastes, particularly the non-biodegradable wastes from Nainital’s urban areas like Haldwani.
Notably, for the commercial capital of Kumaon division, Haldwani, that produces more than 70 tons of civic wastes- both biodegradable and non-biodegradable- every day, proper disposal of the same is proving to be a major concern.
However, Nainital District Magistrate Deepak Rawat seems to have summed up his responsibility by only directing the officials concerned to ban the use of polythene bags and appealing to the people to cooperate with the district administration regarding this exercise. Cautioning the seller and the buyers of the polythene bags, Rawat asserted that raids would be conducted from time to time and the offenders would be slapped with a fine of `500 per polythene bag.
However, the order seems to have failed to sufficiently cut into the shop keepers. Resenting the order, they said they are per force selling items in such bags with no ‘affordable’ alternative option being available.
Asked as to how they would avoid action by the enforcement agencies, the shopkeepers maintain that they conceal such bags when raids are conducted occasionally. Even the vegetable vendors are seen selling their produce in the same polythene bags. Since jute or cloth bags are costlier, they continue using them, added the shopkeepers.
Against the backdrop of the ongoing Clean India Campaign launched by the Government of India across the country with an approach of community participation, the approach of the Nainital district administration on the matter presents a contrast in terms of sincerity.