State not responsible to provide alternatives for plastic companies

摘要

Taking exception to the demand from companies manufacturing single use plastics that they should be provided suitable alternative arrangements by the State government for banning the use of such items from January 1,2019,Rajendra Ratnoo,Commissioner of Disaster Management,said that it was not the duty of government to do so.Speaking at a regional-level awareness conference on the ban,he said it was not the government that asked the companies to open plastic manufacturing units.However,he highlighted that what the State government will instead do is to facilitate a business environment where companies manufacturing alternatives to plastics and recycling of plastic waste can thrive.”The ban on single use plastic companies may affect a few big companies.The ban will,however,help in large number of small scale and cottage units to thrive,”he added.He suggested that the companies making banned plastic items can try moving to to recycling of waste and other related activities.Shambhu Kallolikar,Principal Secretary,Environment and Forests Department,said that though 14 single use plastic items are getting banned from January 1,2019,these items contributed only five to six % of the total plastic items in use.K.C.Karuppannan,Minister for Environment,said that the proposed ban on plastic was part of a series of measures implemented by the AIADMK government to safeguard the environment.