Plastic ban includes polypropylene bags, clarifies Commissioner at MCC meet

Mangalore, November 30: The polypropylene bags which look like cloth bags are also covered under the plastic ban implemented in the city, Dr. Harish Kumar, Commissioner, Mangalore City Corporation (MCC) said.

He gave this clarification at the monthly meeting held at MCC on Friday.

Corporators including Former Mayor Shankar Bhat, Deepak Poojary and Harinath raised the issue of the polypropylene bags being used in the city and argued that lab reports have proved that these bags too are polymer products and must also be banned besides the conventional plastic carry bags and urged concerned officials to not target people over the use of the latter type alone. Dr. Kumar, in response, clarified that the ban enforced on plastic also encompasses such semi-plastic materials. “It is a wrong notion that the MCC is encouraging these bags. They too come under the ban”, he said.

Corporator Sudhir Shetty said that plastic in the form of soft drink bottles, milk packets and water bottles must also be brought under the ban. Mr. Harinath pressed for an alternate arrangement for people to carry meat and fish.

Another corporator raised the issue of certain officials using the plastic ban pretext to harass shopkeepers and obtain bribes.

Corporator Mariyamma Thomas, expressing her views, said that the Deputy Commissioner should not have taken the decision of banning plastic in the city before allowing the City Corporation Council to decide on it first after judging the pros and cons of the matter.

Jayanthi B Shetty, another Corporator, said that the plastic manufacturing plants must be targeted rather than harassing shopkeepers and the common man.

When the issue of the scheduled door to door collection of garbage came up, the Commissioner said in response to a query that the concerned agency or officials who will be entrusted with the job, will be monitored closely. “People will be given a helpline number through which they can intimate the MCC if the concerned officials do not come to their place for garbage collection”, he said.

Decision taken against toll-gate in city limits

When a corporator raised the issue of the proposed toll-gate at Surathkal and the Deputy Commissioner's initiative in this regard a couple of weeks ago, other corporators joined in and demanded that no toll-gate be allowed inside city limits. Corporator Harish Surathkal said that as per laws the distance between toll-gates has to be 80 kms and in special cases a maximum of 60 kms. But the said toll-gate is being set up within a distance of 30 kms which is a blatant violation.

Mayor Gulzar Banu declared that no toll gate would be allowed inside city limits and a written intimation in this regard would be sent to the Deputy Commissioner.