Exhorting the public to avoid the use of plastic products such as polythene bags, Collector N Venkatachalam announced that free paper bags and covers would be distributed to visitors attending the ‘Kodai Vizha’, the Kodaikanal Summer Festival that will kick off next week.
The Collector was speaking at a special planning meet ahead of the festival in Kodaikanal on Friday.
He pointed out that single-use plastic bags posed a major threat to the environment.
This was due to the sheer volume of accumulated waste products and also need for extensive resources to produce, transport and, in some cases, recycle them.
The Collector also noted the risk of pollution posed by emissions resulting from these processes. Single-use plastic bags had an adverse impact on the ecosystem as they tend to clog pipes and drains, particularly during floods.
For Kodai Vizha, the Collector declared that special teams would be formed not only to enforce the ban on plastic items during celebratory events, but also to hand out paper bags to visitors.
He appealed for cooperation from both residents and visitors as the measures were aimed at conserving the environment for a better tomorrow.
As part of security measures, CCTV cameras would be installed at key points. The Collector said that this would help track miscreants at the festival. The meeting was attended by Dindigul SP, T Jeyachandran and other officials.