Need to regulate single use plastics : Think out of the box
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: May 15, 2025 -

Naga Nulla choked with plastic bottles :: Pix - TSE

The Government will have to think out of the box if it is intent on checking the rampant use of single use plastics which mostly come in the form of the polythene bags and water bottles.

The story 'Naga Nulla choked with plastic bottles' and the accompanying picture should tell the story of how plastic has dealt a severe blow on the free flow of a nullah which empties into the Nambul river at Shamumakhong.

The picture and the story should wake the Government to the fact that it needs to do much more than cracking down on shops selling plastic carry bags and the roadside women vegetable sellers and this is where the need to think out of the box becomes necessary.

The convenience of plastic carry bags is immense.

The Government should take note of this for it is in taking cognizance of the immense convenience afforded by plastic carry bags that studies may be conducted to see what steps should be adopted to check its rampant use.

Acknowledging its immense convenience is the then the first step that is needed.

Second obviously would be to study what steps ought to be taken up to check its easy availability to the public.

How is it that plastic carry bags are so easy to procure and that too at no cost to the shoppers?

This is a question that should be raised by the think tank of the Government.

For one plastic carry bags come at no cost to the shopper and secondly it is extremely convenient.

The ease with which a kilo of fish or a kilo of dressed chicken or pork can be carried in a plastic carry bag must be known to all.

Same is the case when one goes to the shop to buy daily requirements such as a kilo of potato or a kilo of onion.

Name it and everything comes in plastic carry bags, including a bunch of phadigom or dry chilly or turmeric, anything when one goes shopping.

Keeping this reality in mind, it must be conceded that putting a complete ban on plastic carry bags will not succeed and the need is to regulate its use.

Same thing is the case with water that comes in plastic bottles.

Not so long back, the State Government had announced a ban on water bottles of the capacity of half a litre as well as single use plastics, and the picture of Naga Nulla choked with plastic water bottles and discarded plastic carry bags should tell the story of how well the ban has worked at the ground reality.

A classic example that a complete ban has not worked and will not work.

This is where questions ought to be raised on the steps the Government has deliberated on by looking beyond a complete ban but on how to regulate its use.

This is a serious point and the sooner the Government starts on this the better it would be for Manipur and her people.

Alternatives. This is the reason why the Government handed out cloth and jute bags at some market places as part of its drive against single use plastics.

The move is noted, but can the Government continue handing out cloth and jute bags to the shoppers ? The answer should be clear to ail.

As noted more than once in this column, the Government should make the plastic carry bags come with a price, a price that would make the people think twice before opting for it.

It is about making the plastic carry bags come with a price, a price which will have a direct impact on the pocket of anyone who wants the use and throw plastic.

Other than this, the Government should explore all other means to check and regulate the use of plastic carry bags and the plastic water bottles.

For one, enforcement is key and this is where the Government has been found wanting on many occasions.

Just how miserably the Government has failed in enforcing the ban on single use plastics can be discerned from the numerous times the ban has been announced.

The picture of Naga Nulla filled with plastics, including plastic bottles and plastic carry bags reflects the success or failure of the Government to ban single use plastics and this should tell its own significant story.

Move beyond ban and study other options including checking and regulating its rampant use.

This sounds more practical.