It’s all talk and no action when it comes to banning the use of polythene in Ranchi and other districts of Jharkhand. Anti-polythene drives, kicked off from time to time at different locations under the aegis of Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board (JSPCB) and the Ranchi Municipal Corporation, is slowly turning out to be an exercise with no relevance.
For JSPCB chairman the board has its limitations as it is for the Government to enact provisions and bestow the board with discretionary powers to enforce a complete ban. “The file is with the Government,” was tersely put by chairman JSPCB, Manishankar when asked about delay in enforcing law governing ban on polythene.
Interestingly, the advantage made in the battle against polythene is gradually losing its ground and things are heading back to where it was before the anti-polythene drive began in the capital and elsewhere in the State.
“There is confusion among shopkeepers and public on whether any law will be made or not so it is possible that the delay may dilute the efforts made so far,” conceded Manishankar. He also added that impact of polythene ban would not be visible in other places until a law is framed to take care of violations of the ban.
While residents are willing to shun polythene they are shocked at Government’s inaction on framing the required law to make people abide by the ban. For the residents who have vowed to banish polythene a procrastinating government is only abetting the sale of polythene. “It is not possible to prevent people from selling or using polythene if Government does not makes selling a punishable offence,” said Rashmi Tibrewal, a resident of Kanke Road.
Meanwhile, sale of polythene has continued unabated under the nose of an ill-informed District administration with knowledge of less than half of the actual number of traders active in Ranchi. “There are more than 40 traders of polythene in Upper Bazaar and Pandra however administration has a record of only 16 traders. That is the reason polythene is still available in Ranchi,” said Sanjay Chaudhary, a polythene trader in Upper Bazaar.
The administration was said to be focussing only on handful of traders who incidentally had adhered to the provisions banning sale and use of polythene while others continued to mint money in the name of scarcity of polythene. “Those who are not in the list of administration are making profits while we are sticking to the ban. Either the government should not come up with such proposals or enforce it strictly if it is serious about ban. Clearly it is the government’s fault,” said Chaudhary.