Bhubaneswar: Single-use plastic worth Rs 50 lakh was seized, Thursday, from a godown at Sahid Nagar during a raid conducted by a special squad Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC).
The squad was reportedly acting on a tip-off about the banned items being hoarded inside a godown. The raid found that one Alok Kumar Biswal’s resident of Plot No-638 at Sahid Nagar had about 160 boxes of the banned plastic. It is being speculated this was a hub from where the plastic items were being supplied to several places in the City.
While the banned substance was seized a case has been registered under relevant Sections of IPC and a probe is underway. A fine of Rs 50,000 has also been imposed on the accused and the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) authorities were subsequently informed.
The state government had banned single-use plastic in all urban areas of the state from Gandhi Jayanti Day this year. From the day, the ban was imposed on polythene carry bags of any shape, thickness and size (excluding compostable), Polyethylene Terephthalate (Pet/Pete) bottles of less than 200 ml capacity.
It also banned single-use disposable cutleries made up of thermocol (polystyrene), polyurethane and similar products, of plastic such as dish, spoon, cup, plate, glass, fork, bowl, pouch to store liquid and container of any size and shape except for packing and selling of milk.