PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT
Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U) 2.0 under The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) lays special emphasis on reduction of plastic waste generation and compliance of Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Rules dated 12.08.2021. Key focus areas include source segregation of waste; segregated collection and transportation; processing of segregated waste; setting up of Material Recovery Facility (MRF) in all ULBs; continuous awareness generation for reducing Single Use Plastic (SUP) and use of substitute products. In addition, the following initiatives have been taken:
(i) Additional Central Assistance (ACA) to States and Union Territories (UTs) is released for establishing Solid Waste Management (SWM) projects for processing of all kinds of waste,
(ii) A ‘Plastic Waste Management Advisory’ has been developed capturing the plastic waste generation, plastic waste management rules and various ways to manage plastic waste through reduce, reuse, recycle and recovery techniques;
(iii) ‘Swachh Survekshan’ and ‘Star Rating Protocol’ have been introduced which have been aligned with Plastic Waste Management (amendment) Rules 2021 to encourage cities to phase out single-use plastic, etc.
In addition, all States/UTs have constituted the Special Task Force (STF) under the chairpersonship of the Chief Secretary / Administrator for elimination of identified single use plastic items and effective plastic waste management and development of comprehensive action plan in this regard. A National Level Taskforce has also been constituted by the Ministry for taking coordinated efforts to eliminate identified single use plastic items and effective implementation of Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016.
For effective monitoring of ban on identified single use plastic (SUP) items and plastic waste management in the country, online platforms that are in operation are National Dashboard on elimination of single use plastics and effective plastic waste management; Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) Monitoring Module for Compliance on Elimination of Single Use Plastic and CPCB Grievance Redressal App.
Regular enforcement drives have been undertaken by CPCB, State Pollution Control Board (SPCBs)/ Pollution Control Committees (PCCs) to implement ban on identified single use plastic items and on plastic carry bags having thickness less than one hundred twenty microns.
Further, to develop alternatives to single use plastics, the MoEF&CC organized “India Plastic Challenge – Hackathon 2021”. Two Start-ups in the area of alternatives to single use plastics were awarded in the India Plastic Challenge Hackathon 2021. A National Expo on Eco-Alternatives to single use plastic and Startup Conference was organized on 26th and 27th September, 2022 in Chennai by MoEF&CC and Government of Tamil Nadu in which more than 150 manufacturers of eco-alternatives from across the country have participated. The eco-alternatives included material made from sea-weed, bagasse, rice and wheat bran, rice stubble, plant and agricultural residue, banana and areca leaves, jute and cloth. The list of manufacturers of eco-alternatives is available on National Dashboard on elimination of single use plastics and effective plastic waste management.
This information was given by the Minister of State for Housing & Urban Affairs, Shri Kaushal Kishore, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.
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