TIRUPATI: Municipal Corporation Tirupati (MCT) on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti enforced plastic ban in the city after a month-long awareness drive carried out by the corporation. The state government has put a ban on the use of plastic bags below 40 microns but the city has put a step forward in the campaign and banned all kinds of plastic bags. Other than plastic bags, the corporation also banned the use of thermocol plates, water bottles less than a capacity of 500ml, disposable plastic-coated paper plates, containers, and dishes, and packaging covers less than 51-micron thickness.
Though it is considered a major milestone by the corporation but retailers and distributors are worried over the stock and worried over the proposed fine by the corporation.
The corporation has laid down strict rules for the manufacturers as they will be fined Rs 5000 and Rs 15,000 for the first and second offence, but if they violate the ban for the third time they can lose their license apart from a fine of Rs 25,000. The small traders, hoteliers, retailers, wholesalers, and even roadside hawkers will have to pay Rs 1,000 and Rs 5,000 for violating the ban for first and second time respectively and will lose their license along with a fine of Rs 10,000 upon the third time violation.
Even the general public of the city has not been given any lineage as the corporation has laid down strict rules regarding the use of plastic items. Rs 100 and Rs 500 will be fined for the first two times violation and corporation have warned of disconnecting all services to the residence for the violation for the third time.
The corporation has given the responsibility to sanitary inspectors, sanitary supervisors and health officers for identifying the violators.
“This ban is enforced with a good intention of protecting the future generations from the harmful effects of non-bio-degradable plastic,” said MCT Commissioner V Vijay Rama Raju.