Tamil Nadu will implement a state-wide plastic ban in the coming year after the Madras High Court on Thursday dismissed a petition challenging the order. The ban, which is set to come into effect in the state from 1st January, 2019, is being brought under an environmental protection act of 1986. A bench comprising Justice S Vaidyanathan and Justice PT Asha dismissed a petition filed by Tamil Nadu and Puducherry Plastic Manufacturers Association which called for the withdrawal of the ban, agencies reported. During the hearing, the judges also suggested a total ban on all sorts of plastic across the state.
The decision of implementing the ban on plastic was welcomed by environmentalists, but plastics manufacturers expressed displeasure. On June 5, Tamil Nadu Chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami had made the announcement in the state assembly that the government was thinking to ban non-reusable plastic products. However, the government issued an order to the effect on June 25. According to a report the government is also considering sparing paper cups coated with plastic from the ban.
In June, the Palaniswami-led government in Tamil Nadu had announced that single-use plastic ( like grocery bags, food containers, bottles, straws, containers, cups and cutlery) will be banned in the state from 1st January 2019.
Terming the plastic ban ‘discriminatory’, the Tamil Nadu Plastic Manufacturers’ Association (TAPMA) had alleged that use of plastic in many government sectors and large-scale private sectors continues but the same is banned for the public and small-scale private sectors.
–India Legal Bureau with agencies