Now, single-use plastic products will be banned in...

Bihar state cabinet voted to prohibit the manufacture, import, storage, circulation, and use of single-use plastic, whose disposal has become a significant threat, on Tuesday.

Led by the Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, this was one of six resolutions made by the cabinet.

Moreover, the prohibition would take effect 180 days after the gazette notice, as per Environment and Forest Minister, Niraj Singh Bablu. “All industrial units and marketing installations would be compelled to dispose of their product, which is mostly made of thermocol, within a certain time frame and to use environmentally friendly alternatives. “A thorough mechanism to monitor the manufacture and use of thermocol products and other single-use plastics, as well as penalties, will be developed and announced soon,” the minister stated.

Polythene manufacture, distribution, and usage had previously been prohibited by the state government.

Polythene bags, on the other hand, are still in use.

While applauding the decision, Ramapati Kumar, CEO of the Centre for Environment and Energy Development, said the government should build the required infrastructure for safe plastic disposal and conduct an awareness campaign to prevent policy leakage.

“Or else, single-use plastic, like polythene, will continue to circulate notwithstanding the ban,” he added.

Further, the cabinet approved the health department's plan to provide all health personnel involved in Covid management one month's salary as a financial incentive. It also gave its approval to the department's intention to spend 62.50 crores on 250 ambulances. The rural water delivery system's long-term maintenance programme for the Panchayati raj department was also approved.

Previously, the Tamil Nadu government prohibited single-use plastics, which took effect on 1st January 2019. The hotel sector was baffled by this decision, and they were seriously scrambled for an appropriate replacement for packed foods. The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) has implemented several measures to comply with the ban, including posting information about the ban on plastic, announcing plastic-free zones, prohibiting the use of plastic items in offices, meetings, parties, and canteens, and utilising Corporate Social Responsibility funds to support initiatives on the ban on plastic and to raise awareness about the issue.

In fact, before Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra was the first state in India to announce a plastic ban on 23rd March 2018. All single-use plastics and thermocol (polystyrene) have been banned in the state, including throwaway goods used just once and plastics used for food packaging in hotels, as well as plastics used to pack fresh foods and grains. On 11th April 2018, the state amended the law to enable the use of PET bottles. This permission, however, came with a stipulation that the producers create a buyback depository system and recycle the discarded plastics.

Another state, Himachal Pradesh, has made it illegal to manufacture and use single-use plastics. On 6th July 2018, Himachal Pradesh issued a plastic ban announcement. In the state, all types of disposable plastics and single-use non-biodegradable materials have been banned. Some significant cities, such as Shimla, were discovered to be devoid of disposable polybags, cups, and tumblers due to the tight surveillance of the ban's enforcement.

Meanwhile, the Telangana government declared a plastic ban on 14th June 2018. Polymers used in drinking bottles, tetra bottles, single-use straws, Styrofoam tea cups and containers, plastics with a thickness of less than 50-microns, and other single-use plastics were all banned.