Friday, 11 November 2022 | PNS | HARIDWAR
Despite the ban on plastic in Haridwar, the use of the banned items has continued to thrive also in the Ghats and other areas along the Ganga river. The Municipal Corporation of Haridwar (MCH) and the district administration have so far not been able to effectively prevent the continued use of the banned items. During the Kartik Purnima Snan held in Haridwar on Tuesday, thousands of plastic sheets were seen scattered around the bathing Ghats. During the cleaning at night, the bulk of the garbage cleaned by the MCH consisted of plastic items.
The photos which were officially shared by the MCH during the cleaning, showed a lot of plastic sheets in the collected garbage. Even on normal days, plastic items are a common sight at Har Ki Paidi and other Ghats in Haridwar. Social worker Dinesh Joshi had sought information from the corporation under the Right to Information Act on the quantity of banned plastic confiscated by the corporation and the penalty collected for the use of the banned items. However, the information sought was not available at that time.
Local traders have also expressed concern over the continued use of plastic sheets.Business fraternity leader Aman Sharma said that plastic sheets are being sold openly on the Ghats and the MCH is not taking any concrete action against this. Use of the plastic items in such large quantities is not good for the environment, he added. Another trader Madhusudan Sharma said that though plastic sheets may be convenient for the travellers they pose a major threat to the environment.
The Haridwar municipal commissioner Dayanand Saraswati said that there is no ban on plastic cans, but strict action will be taken against the use of plastic sheets. He said that a team will be formed soon and those who are selling such plastic items will be identified.
