CM Adityanath announces plastic ban in Uttar Pradesh from July 15: Report

The UP government's order comes after the Maharashtra government's state-wide ban on the use of plastic items.

Plastic Ban : After Maharashtra, the Uttar Pradesh government has banned the use of several plastic products, news agency ANI reported on Friday.


"We have issued an order to ban the use of plastic across the state from July 15," Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was quoted as saying by ANI. "After July 15, plastic cups, glasses, and polythene should not be used," said Adityanath, adding, "For this, we should all work together."


The UP government's order comes after the Maharashtra government's state-wide ban on the use of plastic items, including carry-bags and thermocol, came into effect from June 23.


Subsequently, Maharashtra eased its ban against single-use plastic, following what a Reuters report said was intense lobbying by multinational companies and plastic industry bodies for softer rules and extensions.

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Maharashtra govt softens plastic ban after industry lobbying

The government banned the sale of plastic bottles containing drinking water less under 200 millilitres.

Plastic Ban : Maharashtra has eased a ban against single-use plastic, just over a week after it was imposed, following what sources said was intense lobbying by multinational companies and plastic industry bodies for softer rules and extensions.

Maharashtra, home to India's financial capital of Mumbai, has allowed e-commerce companies to use plastic packaging for three more months, according to a government order dated June 30, which was published on Tuesday.

During these three months, e-commerce firms will have to come up with a buyback plan to collect used plastic packaging material, ensure its recycling and disposal as well as source alternative packaging material.

The ban, which came into effect on June 23, had threatened a sharp rise in costs for retailers, beverage makers and sellers of bottled water, among other companies that rely on plastic for packaging.

Representatives of companies including Amazon, H&M, Pepsi and Coca-Cola, as well as plastic lobby groups, met Maharashtra government officials days before the ban, urging them to implement the rule in phases and relax some norms, Reuters quoted four sources as saying on Friday.

A senior government official, who was involved in the talks and did not wish to be identified due to government rules, said changes to the ban had been made after considering the industry demands.

Maharashtra's top environment official Anil Diggikar did not answer calls or texts seeking comment.

In its latest order, the government banned the sale of plastic bottles containing drinking water less under 200 millilitres. It also did not specify a buyback price for empty bottles used for selling beverages other than water, a move that could potentially help soft drink makers.

Amazon, Pepsi and Coca-Cola declined to comment on the modifications to the ban. H&M did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The latest rules also exempt the use of plastic packaging of medical equipment and drugs.

Plastic could be used for wrapping products by manufacturers, if the material used was thicker than 50 microns, comprised at least 20 percent recyclable material and had the manufacturer's details and buyback price printed on it, the order said.

Maharashtra's move to ban plastic, the first such broad action against the material by an Indian state, comes as Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushes a plan to completely end the use of single-use plastic in India by 2022.

Amazon, H&M and other multinationals pressing to soften Maharashtra's plastic ban

The ban includes bags, food containers, spoons, forks, glasses and packaging wraps - which the local plastics industry says could cost it up to Rs 150 billion a year and nearly 300,000 jobs.

Maharashtra Plastic Ban : Multinational companies like Amazon Inc and H&M are lobbying to soften a ban against single-use plastic imposed by an Indian state last week, according to four sources familiar with the matter.
The ban by the state of Maharashtra, home to India's financial capital of Mumbai, could sharply raise costs for companies that rely heavily on plastic for packaging, such as retailers, beverage makers and sellers of bottled water.
Maharashtra's move, the first such broad action against plastic by an Indian state, comes as Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushes a plan to completely end the use of single-use plastic in India by 2022.
Plastic packaging accounts for nearly half of all plastic waste globally, and much of it is thrown away within just a few minutes of its first use, according to the United Nations.
Representatives of companies including Amazon, H&M, Pepsi and Coca-Cola, as well as plastic industry bodies and lobby groups, met with Maharashtra government officials days before the ban came into effect on June 23, urging them to implement the rule in phases and relax some norms, said the four sources who declined to be named.
"Our demand to the government is: give the industry seven years to come up with alternatives," said Neemit Punamiya, general secretary of the Plastic Bags Manufacturers Association of India, who attended the meeting. "It cannot happen overnight - we've got investments, we've got loans to pay and people to manage."
The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, whose members include online retailers such as Amazon India and Flipkart, said in a June 7 letter to the state government that such a ban "will not be without its own share of adverse environmental impacts which are largely driven by issues associated with the use of alternatives".
The Internet and Mobile Association of India, which also counts Amazon and Flipkart as members, said it had asked the state to ease the rules but did not specify what relaxation it was seeking.
Beverage makers such as Pepsi and Coca-Cola, meanwhile, want an exemption from the rules as they mandate a buyback of empty bottles at a guaranteed price, which will raise costs, another source familiar with the talks said.
Amazon, Flipkart, Pepsi and Coca-Cola did not respond to requests for comment. H&M said in a statement that it supported reusing and recycling, adding that the company had asked the government to clarify the rules and for help coming up with solutions.
Maharashtra's environment minister said Wednesday that the government would relax rules for neighbourhood grocery stores allowing them to pack commodities such as rice and pulses in plastic. They would, however, have to ensure buyers return the packaging for recycling.

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Maharashtra govt's move to ban use of plastic puts RIL in recycle mode

Company creating platform for building corpus and setting up full-fledged sustainability team.

Plastic Ban : The Maharashtra government’s decision in March to partially ban the use of plastic has put the country’s largest polymer producer in recycle mode. The Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries (RIL) is now creating a platform for recycling, building a corpus and setting up a full-fledged sustainability team.


“The ban from Maharashtra was more of a wake-up call for the industry,” said Vipul Shah, chief operating officer of RIL's petrochemicals business. RIL had homework in place over the last couple of years. The ban accelerated the process, he added.


“There was earlier a small team of two to three people working on a smaller project like bottle recycling. We now have a full-fledged department for sustainability of seven to eight people working full time and another 10-12 moonlighting,” Shah added.


RIL is the country’s largest producer of polymer, the main raw material required for making plastic items. Shah did not share details on how much of the company’s polymer production is consumed through plastic bags and other items banned in the state.


“The exposure to banned items is minimal, less than three per cent maybe. It is more likely to affect small enterprises. As for RIL, there are other segments to cater to,” said a person with direct knowledge of the business.


Part of the sustainability team’s job is to develop an extended producer responsibility (EPR) platform for the industry. “Being the largest polymer producer, we want to design something that is adaptable to India and not a copy from Europe. We want to design the whole chain from segregation, collection, secondary segregation, recycling, generating energy and oil,” Shah added.


The corpus, he said, would be funded through RIL’s petrochemicals business, not as part of its corporate social responsibility programme.

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