Thursday, 08 June 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN
Despite the government having imposed a ban on the use of plastic items, many coconut sellers in Dehradun are still providing plastic straws to their customers. Surprisingly, many of the coconut sellers are not even aware of the fact that use of plastic straws has been banned. Roadside coconut vendors are still providing plastic straws to their customers as they consider them much more affordable than paper straws. Moreover, the customers strongly prefer plastic straws to paper ones.
Commenting on the matter, a coconut seller Raju said, “I have been selling coconut water for the past five years. Now I cannot suddenly switch to paper straws from plastic straws. This is not easy. First, plastic straws are much cheaper than paper straws. Second, the customers are reluctant to switch.”
Another coconut seller Mahesh Kashyap said, “I was surprised when some doctors visited my stall and asked for paper straws. I was not previously aware of the ban on the use of plastic straws. But I cannot replace plastic straws with paper straws. Plastic straws are cheaper. One plastic straw costs 25-50 paisa while a paper straw costs Rs 2-3.” The opinion of Amit, a coconut seller in Dehradun, is the same. He said that paper straws are not at all a good alternative to plastic straws. “Paper straws become soggy and disintegrate quickly. If stored for a long time, the paper straw becomes smelly and it affects taste. The customers are thus reluctant to use paper straws and they ask for plastic straws instead,” he added.
