HYDERABAD: The High Court on Monday directed the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh governments to work towards providing clean civic life to the residents of their respective States.
A division bench, comprising Chief Justice KJ Sengupta and Justice PV Sanjay Kumar, issued the directive on a petition filed by Visakha Society for Protection and Care of Animals seeking a total ban on the manufacture, sale, use and circulation of plastic bags of all sizes in both the states.
The bench reiterated its earlier view that civic authorities must consider division of collection of waste by classifying them as bio-degradable waste and non-biodegradable waste at the collection point itself.
The petitioner’s counsel submitted that it was time to put in place garbage collection and treatment devices and create public awareness on the ill-effects of indiscriminate usage of plastic bags and also provide methods to treat the plastic material so far dumped and being dumped in all the places. The bench pointed out that a per se ban on use of plastic was neither possible nor legal, and that plastic can be used within the prescribed limit. As for the other prayer on dealing with the huge amount of waste and its disposal, the bench referred to its earlier order and said the authorities must think of putting in place a whistle boy to collect the waste at the cost of the citizen.
File report or face music, GHMC warned
The High Court on Monday rapped the GHMC for not filing a compliance report with regard to the action taken by it to remove encroachments on footpaths. It had directed the GHMC to remove encroachments on road margins in two areas in Dec last year. The court cautioned the civic body that failure to file the report in a week would invite contempt proceedings.