Delhi to hold weekly fair from June 1 to promote alternatives to SUP items: Gopal Rai

With the aim to reduce pollution in the national capital, Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Wednesday said that his govt will conduct a weekly fair to promote alternatives to single-use plastic (SUP) items from June 1.

New Delhi: The Delhi government will conduct a weekly fair to promote alternatives to single-use plastic (SUP) items from June 1, Environment Minister Gopal Rai said on Wednesday. The government will also incentivise units engaged in the production of alternatives to SUP items under the Delhi Start-up Policy, he said. The policy aims to promote entrepreneurship in the national capital by providing financial assistance to build a successful business.

Rai said the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has been asked to prepare a list of shops selling SUP items so that they can be linked with units manufacturing their alternatives. After the ban on SUP items comes into force (from July 1), there will be a new challenge for workers, suppliers, manufacturers and sellers of such products.

"Secondly, SUP items are being used at a large scale. Keeping these things in mind, we discussed the alternatives available in the market at a conference with departments concerned," Rai said. Start-ups and self-help groups manufacturing alternatives to SUP items showcased their products at 17 stalls at the Delhi Secretariat, he said. In August last year, the Union Environment Ministry had issued a notification prohibiting the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of identified single-use plastic commodities, including polystyrene and expanded polystyrene from July 1, 2022.

The identified SUP items include earbuds, plastic sticks for balloons, flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, polystyrene (thermocol), plates, cups, glasses, forks, spoons, knives, straws, trays, wrapping or packaging films around sweets boxes, invitation cards, cigarette packets, plastic or PVC banners less than 100 micron, and stirrers. All manufacturers, retailers, general public, and shopkeepers in Delhi have already been asked not to keep any stock of single-use plastic by June 30, 2022.

The Delhi Pollution Control Committee has also asked all manufacturers of raw materials to stop supplying plastic items to those engaged in use of banned SUP products. It is also carrying out a survey to identify littering hotspots and quantify plastic waste generation in the city. The Dellhi government had last year constituted a state-level task force for elimination of SUP and effective implementation of Plastic Waste Management Amended Rules, 2021. (PTI)