Swachh Bharat Mission Urban 2.0 organizes SwachhTalks episode on Managing Plastic Waste
Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0, under the aegis of the Ministry of
Housing and Urban Affairs, on 29th July, 2022
organized the fourth edition of SwachhTalks, the national peer learning webinar
series on the topic of ‘Managing Plastic Waste’. The aim of this
SwachhTalks episode was to nudge discussions around the need to effectively
manage plastic waste to achieve the Mission’s goal of creating ‘Garbage Free
Cities’.
While speaking to the nation through
his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ series, Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has
repeatedly emphasized on the need for citizens to come together to collectively
combat plastic pollution and adopt Swachhata as a way of life.
The first announcement for phasing
out single-use plastic was made on August 15, 2019 by the PM and was also
reiterated during his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ address. PM Modi called for a national
movement against Single Use Plastics as a tribute to Mahatma
Gandhiji’s 150th birth anniversary. He said, “When we celebrate Mahatma Gandhi’s
150th anniversary we’ll not only be dedicating open defecation free India to
him, but also kick starting a mass movement for making India plastic-free… Let
birth anniversary of Gandhi ji serve as an inspiration for all of us to curb
single-use plastic.”
Since then, Indian cities and States have taken steps to enforce the
Single Use Plastics ban from July 1, 2022. Nearly a month since the ban has
been enforced, Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0’s SwachhTalks episode invited
cities, States, organizations, and Swachhata Champions from across the country
to take stock of the progress being made on managing plastic waste.
Roopa Mishra, Joint Secretary and
National Mission Director, Swachh Bharat Mission Urban, Ministry of Housing and
Urban Affairs highlighted India’s role as an emerging global leader in the
field of sustainable sanitation and waste management and contextualized
the progress being made across cities. She said, “India is crucially
emerging as a strong voice in climate & environmental matters. The PM’s
recently launched Lifestyle for Environment Movement (LiFE) is another landmark
campaign that advocates for the same. The LiFE Movement is all about
making the right choices and this is a guiding philosophy of the Mission as
well. The ban on Single Use Plastics (SUP) is a landmark step in adopting
eco-friendly lifestyles that are in harmony with nature. We are also witnessing
unprecedented mass movements and janandolan to create
awareness regarding the same. This is just the beginning.”
Dr Satyendra Kumar, Director,
Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change talked about Plastic Waste
Management Rules 2016, its respective amendments, and the revised Extended
Producers Responsibility framework. He highlighted that the SUP items that have
been banned in July 2022 are those that have ‘high littering potential and low
utility’. The need of the hour, according to him, is to find sustainable,
economic, and accessible alternatives to plastic.
Anindita Mitra, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh spoke
about the unique initiatives undertaken by Chandigarh Municipal Corporation to
enforce the ban on Single-Use Plastics. Initiatives such as ‘Back to Basics’ to
promote sustainable alternatives to SUPs, ‘Har Gaadi Bin-Har Gaadi Bag’ to prevent
littering on roads and highways, and ‘Swachhata Ki Pathshala’ to mobilize youth
to align with the goals of the Mission were taken by the Union Territory. On
the other hand, the State Mission Directorate tackled the availability and
distribution of SUPs by levying fines on shops, incentivizing market
associations to become plastic-free, and by ensuring adequate availability of
eco-friendly bags made of alternative materials. Other Extensive campaign and
awareness activities such as ‘Selfie with Bottle’ to promote steel and glass
bottles instead of plastic bottles, and public street plays have contributed to
the successful implementation of the ban in Chandigarh.
Providing more perspectives on the ongoing jan andolan for Swachhata,
Ripu Daman Bevli, also known as the Plog Man of India, spoke about the need to
first ‘Refuse’ plastic items, before we ‘Reduce, Reuse or Recycle’ them.
Speaking about linking Swachhata with swasthya, he said,
“Bringing together the fitness with cleanliness has led to the creation and
popularization of plogging as a way through which we can strengthen the jan
andolan to achieve the Mission’s goal of Garbage Free Cities.”
While talking about initiatives being undertaken by Zomato India and
Amazon India towards becoming ‘Plastic Neutral Businesses’, Anjalli Ravi Kumar,
Chief Sustainability Officer, Zomato, and Shubhra Jain, Public Policy-
Sustainability Lead, Amazon India spoke about various initiatives being
undertaken by their companies. Highlighting the importance of segregating waste
at source to achieve the goal of ‘Garbage Free Cities’, Anjalli mentioned that
Zomato is committed to create a ‘Waste Free World’. She said, “Plastic material
is cheap & available, spill proof, food safe, keeps food hot, all of which
are important in the Indian market. But how do we prevent plastics from
reaching landfills? Segregation at source and recycling are a must while
managing plastic waste. Last year, Zomato made cutlery optional for every
online food order. This was an initiative taken before the SUP ban came into
force.”
Shubhra spoke about Amazon’s pledge to become a net zero carbon
emissions company by 2040. She said, “Amazon India Is working on multiple
solutions that will help reduce plastic waste. We aim to go beyond usage of
Single Use Plastics specifically. We have started using paper-based mailers. We
are also piloting and testing innovated paper- based tapes as part of our
packaging instead of plastic tape. Amazon India has also started the
‘packaging free shipment’ process, where the customer receives the product in
the original producer's packaging rather than it being re-packaged by Amazon in
our packaging.”
Swachh Bharat Mission- Urban 2.0 is committed to nurture startups in the
sanitation and waste management industry. Two such startups, who are working on
managing plastic waste, were invited to episode #4 of SwachhTalks.
Arpit Dhupar, CEO and Co Founder of Dharaksha Ecosolutions Pvt Ltd spoke
about the packaging product made by his startup that tackles the problem of air
pollution and plastic pollution as it is biodegradable and decomposes within 60
days. He detailed the process of manufacturing the packaging material using
stubble waste and mycelium, a type of fungi. He highlighted that the product
has been able to pass ‘stress and drop tests’ performed by their industry
partners. The environmental, economic, and social impacts of the packaging
materials is a proof of credibility of alternative solutions to plastic are not
only possible but also profitable, and scalable.
Plastic Waste Management industry heavily relies on the work done by the
informal sector. Insights about the industry were shared by Akash Shetti from
Plastics for Change. The organization enables global brands to source high
quality recycled plastic from fair-trade verified and ocean-bound plastic
certified supply chains. Plastics for Change is also working for welfare of the
informal sector involved in collection, segregation, and recycling of plastic
waste. Informal recycling sector usually does not have a consistent stable
income or work assurance. Plastics for change is working to ensure that they
get a consistent fair price, along with enabling the informal sector by giving
them trainings about banking, insurance, and other crucial financial matters.