BHUBANESWAR: When the state capital is undergoing a major makeover ahead of the Hockey World Cup next month, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) has found no solution to the rampant use of single-use plastic, that has turned into a garbage menace.
The civic body that has been running against time to give a new look to the city has not been able to check the usage of single-use plastic, which is scarring the beautification drive ahead of the quadrennial event.
Almost all major roads and streets including residential areas in the city are littered with polythene and single-use plastic items that make up for 70 per cent of the trash generated every day.
Moreover, the plastic waste has clogged the Gangua Nullah, GGP canal, as well as the natural storm water channels here, turning them into mosquito breeding ground. Many stretches of the NH-16, that has been included in the priority road network for World Cup beautification project, can also be found littered with these non-biodegradable plastic waste.
However, any substantial crackdown to discourage vendors, traders and residents from using single-use plastic items is yet to be started by the BMC, in spite of the fact that the World Cup is just three weeks away.Acting on the single-use plastic ban order in the state in July, the BMC had framed a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to strongly enforce the rule.
The SOP had provision of fine ranging from Rs 200 to Rs 50,000 against violators flouting the new norms. The SOP also has provision of necessary legal action and criminal proceedings against the offenders.However, sources in the BMC said around Rs 3.5 lakh fine has been collected in the last six months, while legal action against repeated offenders have remained virtually nil.
The curb on single-use plastic seems to have helped in addressing half of city’s waste management problem, but BMC’s failure in implementing the ban has started to raise questions.BMC commissioner Vijay Amruta Kulange said strong enforcement drive will start soon to crackdown on the violators.
“We have given sufficient time in awareness programmes. Traders and vendors found violating the norms will now be fined Rs 5,000,” he said and added that the crackdown will also be launched on illegal supply of the banned items in the city.