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In a few days from now, if you step out to buy something, there’s going to be no room for excuses about leaving your shopping bag behind. Going the whole shebang, the state cabinet on Thursday approved the draft final notification enforcing a complete ban on use of bags, sheets and covers made of plastic and other polymers. The ban will come into effect from the date of Gazette notification, about 10 days from now.Earlier, only plastic bags of less than 40 microns were banned. Going a step further, the cabinet has also extended the ban to other packaging material like thermocol and plastic micro beads. The cabinet gave its consent to the final draft after going through the recommendations of an experts’ committee and convinced about the benefits of the ban. However, the Environment, Forest and Ecology Department, the nodal agency to enforce ban, has allowed certain exemptions.Sources in the department revealed to BM that items like dairy products, nurseries which use plastic bags to grow seedlings, bags meant for export and plastic bags that are an integral part of packaging and used to seal goods prior to manufacturing are exempted from the purview of the ban.Prompted by the worsening garbage crisis in January 2015, CM Siddaramaiah who was then holding charge of the BBMP announced the government’s decision to ban plastic carry bags and promised to issue a formal order at the earliest. However, till October 2015 there was no news on the promised action.According to sources in government, pressure from several lobbies in favour of the industry had been restraining the government from issuing the orders.But on October 20, 2015, the cabinet finally approved the proposal. Subsequently, a draft notification was issued seeking opinions, objections and suggestions from various stakeholders. A four-member expert committee headed by secretary, environment and ecology, was also formed in December 2012 to examine the suggestions and objections. After reviewing the objections, the committee recommended issuing a final notification on enforcing the ban.Interestingly, concerns over revenue prompted the government to consult the finance department too about possible losses to the exchequer. The finance department revealed that compared to cost incurred on disposal of waste and the impact of plastic on the environment was much higher than the revenue generated and, hence, supported the ban, according to officials.While the entire state was united in urging the government to go for a complete ban on plastic, Dakshina District -- the home district of Forest, Environment and Ecology minister B Ramanatha Rai -- opposed the move. Out of the total 1,623 representations from various stakeholders to the experts’ committee, a whopping 1,372 representations were from labourers employed in plastic industries.A senior official of Environment, Ecology and Forest Department said, “Majority of labourers employed in plastic industries hail from Dakshina Kannada district. Workers were worried the ban would affect their livelihood.”However, the committee resolved the issue by suggesting these workers could involve themselves in manufacturing alternative package materials like bags made of paper, cloth and jute fibre. “This could also provide a boost to a host of cottage industries,” the committee said.Though the Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules of 2011 enforce ban on plastic bags that are less than 40 microns in thickness, the committee observed various problems in implementing the order and, hence, recommended blanket ban on plastic materials of all micron levels.“In spite of the ban on plastic bags of less than 40 microns, it has not been possible to prevent manufacturing of carry bags that are of lesser thickness due to technical difficulties in restricting machinery used for production. It became possible for industries to continue manufacturing the banned carry bags stealthily and sell them.Other neighbouring states too could supply such banned plastic. Moreover, the general public is not in a position to examine thickness of the plastic. Plastic materials of all types are creating severe problem in disposal of solid waste in Bengaluru city in particular. Under these circumstances, solid waste can be scientifically managed by banning all plastic,” the committee said.The draft final notification banning plastic materials has, however, allowed exemption to certain industries. Copy of the draft final notification states, “Plastic carry bags manufactured for export purpose at a plastic industry located inside a SEZ or Export Oriented Units (EOUs). Plastic bags that constitute an integral part of the packaging in which goods are sealed prior to use, plastic bags and sheets used in forestry and horticulture nurseries and plastic used for packaging of milk and milk products are exempted from the notification.”Plastic carry bags, banners, buntings, flex boards, flags, plates, cups, spoons, cling film and plastic sheets of any thickness and any similar item made of thermocol. No shopkeeper, vendor, wholesaler, retailer, trader, hawker shall manufacture, supply, store, transport, sale or distribute these items.Items made out of poly propylene (PP), non-woven poly propylene, multi layered co-extruder poly propylene, poly ethylene (PE), poly vinyl chloride (PVC), high and low density poly ethylene (HDPE and LDPE), poly styrene (PS) which is also called thermocol, poly amides (nylon), poly terephthalate (PT), poly methyl methacrylate (PMM) and plastic micro beads.* Karnataka State Pollution Control Board. * The Commissioner, joint commissioners, revenue officers, health officers of BBMP. * Deputy commissioners in districts. * All environment officers above the rank of assistant environmental officers, * commissioners of all city corporations and local bodies. * Tahsildars of all talukas. * Commercial Tax Officers. * Food and Civil Supplies Department. * Violators are liable to face legal action under section 19 of the Environment (Protection) Act of 1986 and a complaint will be filed before the jurisdictional court.