Berhampur: Even as the state government banned the sale and use of polythene materials from Gandhi Jayanti (October 2), most of the business establishments in Silk City continue to trade in the banned materials, a report said.
The matter came to fore when the enforcement squad of Berhampur Municipal Corporation (BeMC) seized over one quintal of plastic and polythene materials and sealed a wholesale shop during a raid on various wholesale and retail shops at Gate Bazaar and Aska Road.
Notably, the state’s only homegrown English daily Orissa POST and Odia daly Dharitri has actively campaigned for plastic ban calling the denizens to stop using polythene and plastic materials in view of the pollution in the environment arising out of its use.
They seized the banned materials from the street vendors at Gate Bazaar and over eight shops and collected a penalty of Rs 400 from them. The team while raiding a wholesale shop at Pandra Sahi on Aska Road seized over one quintal of the banned materials, thermocols from wholesale shop and sealed the outlet, the BeMC sources said.
The BeMC authorities heeding to the plastic ban of the state government carried to awareness drive to sensitise the residents in Silk City and launched raids on various wholesale and retail outlets from first week of November.
The team members raided various shops, shopping malls and asked them to refrain from use of polythene while seizing the banned materials in their possession. Later, the team launched raids on various shops and seized the banned materials while collecting penalty from them.
The raids by the BeMC team have unnerved the business establishment as sources said that the raids will continue till the city becomes free from the banned materials.
PNN