Drafted in 2019, plastic waste by-laws may be notified soon

Plastic waste management by-laws will be notified in the Capital by next week, a government official said on Monday, to follow through on a nationwide ban on single-use plastic came that into force on July 1.

“The urban development department sought public feedback on the by-laws in August last year but the final notification is still awaited. They may be notified by next week,” a state environment department official aware of the matter said.

The state’s plastic waste management rules prescribe a range of fines on the use, manufacture and disposal of banned plastic products.

However, since the rules have not been notified yet, the agencies are being forced to handle violations under the Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) rules, which are less stringent. The MSW rules prescribe a fine of ₹500 for littering and waste processing related violations, and may extend up to a maximum of ₹5,000.

However, under the plastic waste rules, violators can be fined between ₹1,000 and ₹50,000 for varied offences. Under the plastic waste by-laws, open burning of such waste can invite a penalty of ₹5,000, and a person may have to shell out ₹1,000 for littering.

The by-laws mandate a fine of ₹50,000 on producers/importers and distributors who fail to make modalities for the waste collection system as part of extended producer responsibility.

“The draft rules also mandate thickness markings on plastic carry bags and stipulate that a fine of ₹10,000 can be imposed in case of violations of this norm. It will make it much more easier for enforcement teams to take action against banned items when the by-laws are notified,” said an official of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), and added that currently violations are being handled under MSW rules.

A senior Delhi environment ministry official said the plastic waste management by-laws are being vetted by the law department, and “they are likely to be notified next week”. “No changes have been made so far to the proposal sent by the MCD,” the official said asking not to be named.

PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT RULES PRESCRIBE A RANGE OF HEFTY FINES ON THE USE, MANUFACTURE AND DISPOSAL OF BANNED PLASTIC