Following a plea seeking a ban on the plastic packaging of food products, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has constituted an expert committee to ascertain whether further norms are required to restrict the use of plastic packaging.
A Bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel constituted the panel comprising representatives from the Central Pollution Control Board, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), Bureau of Indian Standards and the Directorate of Health Services.
Directing the FSSAI to be the nodal agency for coordination and compliance of the order, the Bench said,
‘Subject of restrictions’
“We are of the opinion that the question of whether any further regulatory provisions are required on the subject of restrictions on the packaging by use of plastic material, after the steps already taken…are to be examined by an expert committee.”
The directions came when the green panel was hearing a plea moved by NGO Him Jagriti Uttaranchal Welfare Society that sought a ban on the use of plastic bottle and multilayered or pet bottles.
The NGT also noted the submissions made by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change pertaining to the fact that phasing out multilayered plastic may not be immediately possible without alternatives.
The NGO, however, contended that the Ministry had only focused on waste management and not on the issue of restrictions to be imposed on the use of plastic as packaging material.