The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) continued action against those violating the plastic ban on Sunday, finding banned items in 72 of the 867 shops and establishments inspected by its officials.
The BMC seized 591 kg plastic and collected fines worth ₹3.35 lakh from offenders, which included McDonald’s and Shoppers Stop outlets in Chembur. Action has been concentrated on shops and establishments so far.
The BMC started enforcing provisions of the plastic ban from Saturday, with action taken against 11 establishments. The crackdown continued on Sunday, with 25 teams of civic officers combing Chembur. Ward-wise action will start Monday onwards.
Refusal to pay up
Apart from the McDonald’s and Shoppers Stop outlets, the 72 shops that were found to have banned items included Hotel Sadguru and Hotel Faroj. The BMC fined them ₹5,000 each and had collected ₹3.35 lakh by the end of the day. Five establishments refused to pay the fine, and the BMC has filed inspection reports for prosecution against them.
Sangita Hasnale, Assistant Municipal Commissioner (Planning), said, “We are happy that only 8% of the establishments we inspected had stored banned plastic. This means our awareness drives have had good impact. We have fined all the violators. We have not started penalising individuals yet.”
The seized plastic is being kept in municipal godowns, and will be eventually sent to recyclers.
Nidhi Choudhary, Deputy Municipal Commissioner in charge of enforcing the ban, said, “Our action is concentrated against establishments for now. The crackdown will be carried out across Mumbai from Monday. We have found multinational brands are not adhering to rules. We have imposed fines on them. We hope they stop the use of banned plastic items, and that Mumbaikars have switched to alternatives already,” said.
Meanwhile, Mumbaikars are struggling to find alternatives to banned plastic items. The BMC’s exhibition showcasing alternatives saw 5,000 visitors on Sunday, the last day of the event.