Pollution board, waste mgmt society ink pact to recycle plastic
TOWARDS A CLEANER STATE 26 FMCG companies to pitch in; pilot project to start in Amritsar, Patiala
AMRITSAR: Aiming to effectively manage post-consumer multilayered packaging (MLP) in the state, the Punjab Plastic Waste Management Society (PPWMS) and a consortium of 26 fast moving consumer good (FMCG) companies signed a pact with the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) to launch a five-year programme. The pilot project for the same will be launched in Amritsar and Patiala.
Depending upon the project’s success in these two districts, all the districts of the Punjab would be covered.
The MOU was signed by PPCB member secretary Krunesh Garg and PPWMS chairman, Sandeep Garg in presence of Punjab environment minister OP Soni and PPCB chairman Satwinder Singh Marwaha on Tuesday to mark the fourth anniversary of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in Guru Nanak Dev University.
The Punjab Plastic Waste Management Society consists of 26 member companies, including Pepsico India, Perfetti Van Melle, Nestlé India, Dabur India, Dharmpalsatyapal Group, Haldiram, Hector Beverages, P&G, Patanjali,godrej Consumer Products, Tata Chemicals, Cremica, among others.
These companies will collect and process 11 lakh kilogram (1,100 tones) of post-consumer multi-layered packaging within the first year. The companies will be paying ₹18 per kilogram to rag pickers to purchase their respective companies’ PCMLP wastes.“punjab government will work hard to include more FMCG companies into the project so that all the districts are be covered,” said Soni.
“We are delighted to see so many companies come together to work with us and take joint responsibility for managing multi-layered packaging waste. This initiative is a unique publicprivate partnership under the Swachh Punjab campaign which will help us progress towards the vision of a plastic- free Punjab ,” Marwaha said.
“Hopefully, we will be able to collectively make a significant difference in this area over the next five years,” said Sandeep Garg. The consortium will engage with waste management service providers in training waste pickers, creating awareness with the help of NGOS, collecting and responsibly re-processing multi-layered plastic.