Wednesday, 22 December 2021 | PNS | Dehradun
In order to minimise the usage of single-use plastic across the city, the Municipal Corporation of Dehradun (MCD) has imposed penalties on over 250 people in the past two weeks. The corporation has collected a total penalty of about Rs 50,000 from the locals for the usage of single-use plastic. After the Covid-19 pandemic hit the state, the use of single-use plastic considerably increased in the city, especially among roadside vendors and local shopkeepers. Considering the non-compliance of anti-plastic norms in the city, the chief municipal health officer Dr Kailash Joshi issued orders to the sanitation inspectors earlier this month to impose penalties in their respective areas.
The sanitation inspector Pushpa Rauthan informed that the three teams of sanitation inspectors are conducting regular inspections in their respective areas on the days allotted to them as per the orders. She said that the inspectors have penalised over 250 people in the past two weeks that include shopkeepers, vendors and some consumers too. She said that the corporation is currently imposing penalties from Rs 100 to Rs 500 and leaving the guilty party with a warning. She stated, “We are focussing on raising awareness among people so we are not levying hefty fines on the roadside vendors and small shopkeepers for now. We seize their polythenes and warn them of imposing hefty fines if the MCD team finds them using the single-use plastic again. We do take action against those who repeatedly violate the norms.” She stated that the teams have seized about 40 kilogrammes of single-use plastic this month.
