NAINITAL: A shopkeeper with a monthly income of Rs 12,000 has been fined a whopping Rs 1.9 crore for failing to comply with the 'no plastic' order in the hill station. Another shopkeeper, who has been fined Rs 24 lakh, has had to mortgage his land in order to pay his dues. The crackdown on businessmen who continue to use polythene bags comes after the Uttarakhand high court (HC) rejected the plea of many who had asked for some relief, and ordered them to deposit the fine money promptly.

Expressing his inability to pay such a massive amount, the shopkeeper who has been fined Rs 24 lakh, told TOI that he had already paid up Rs 1 lakh on May 21 after the HC ordered the fine to be collected. "It is beyond my financial ability to pay this much fine, and I have also made the authorities aware of my financial status."

The humungous amounts being toted up as fine are attributed to the HC order in July last year which stipulated that a fine of Rs 500 per polythene bag be imposed on anyone found using these items anywhere in the district.

After authorities started implementing the order, a number of business owners, including departmental store, Vishal Megamart located in Haldwani, approached the HC in December asking for a stay. However, the HC rejected their plea. Emboldened by this, district officials have continued to raid these places and have recovered a large number of polythene bags from these establishments. "We have tried to implement the HC order in totality and have achieved a fair amount of success in curbing the use of plastic bags in the district. If the order continues to be implemented strictly, we can hope for Nainital to become truly a 'no-plastic zone' in the future," said a district official.