Fine on ill-informed citizens ‘is extortion’
Commotion, confusion, anger at BMC expo as civic officer fails to respond to queries
Though the BMC has been fighting tooth and nail to implement the plastic ban, the civic officials on Sunday had a hard time fielding questions from clueless and confused citizens.
It was the last day of a BMC exhibition that started on June 22. But it turned out to be a nerve-wracking day for a BMC officer who was virtually under siege from the inquisitive vendors in the manufacturing industry and anxious citizens.
Dr. Arun Kshirsagar, the officer present in the early hours of the exhibition, was unable to even answer a simple query whether an unsealed plastic cover used for packing is banned or not.
When the shop owners demanded if they can hand out items to consumers sealed in plastic cover, Dr. Kshirsagar was unable to respond. He simply glared as he groped for answers. This infuriated the onlookers who ‘gheraoed’ him and wanted a firm answer. Finally, under the barrage, he responded with: “No action will be taken on sealed products. Only single-use plastic is banned and action will be taken accordingly.”
Irked citizens slammed the BMC, asking it to improve its collection mechanism rather than impose fines. “How can you blame us for plastic use when your collection and disposal mechanism is not up to the mark? You should first educate citizens about the alternatives available and how to recycle plastic rather than imposing fine. Penalizing an uninformed citizen amounts to extortion,” said one of the shop owners present at the event.
When a bakery owner wanted to know how to grapple with bread wraps which are invariably plastic, his response, however incoherent, was - “If the content is sealed, it is allowed.”
"Shutting down an industry without an alternative is not a solution. A proper segregation
mechanism should be put in place,” said an irritated Abhinav Undire, whose question was met with a blank stare.
When confronted with the queries, Nidhi Chaudhari, deputy municipal commissioner (Special), who has promoted the ban on social media, tweeted, “The queries about retail packaging, food containers, garbage bins, etc. can’t be addressed by the implementing agencies. People should know the difference between the executor and regulator. The notification has been prepared by the State and they have kept some items under consideration.”
Later, around 4 pm, Dr. Sangeeta Hasnale, Assistant Municipal Commissioner (markets), who has trained the BMC’s inspection squad, addressed the gathering was able to allay their misgivings.