The Pune Municipal Corporation collected a fine of Rs 3.69 lakh from the vendors on the first day of the plastic ban on Saturday
Protesting against the action carried out by the civic administration for use of plastic on the first day of the plastic ban on Saturday, the retailers in Pune have called for a day-long strike on Monday. Retailers said they are not against the plastic ban but there is no clarity given by the administration regarding the implementation of the ban.
After the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) collected a fine of Rs 3.69 lakh from the vendors on the first day of the plastic ban on Saturday, the members of Pune district retailers association held a meeting on Sunday. After the discussion, they decided to go on a strike on Monday.
Sachin Nivangune, president of the association said, "There are close to 50,000 retailers in Pune and they will be closed on Monday to protest the unjustified action by the PMC against some of the vendors. Along with the general stores, the Mithai association, the bakery association, stationery association will be participating in the day-long strike."
PMC administration has claimed that they will be taking action only against the vendors and not against the customers but the retailers association claimed that the action itself is unjustified.
"We are not against the ban. We also want plastic to be banned. However, there has to be a procedure to ban it. We understand the action against the carry bags but they are also taking action against the plastic used for covering the material. The civic administration has to explain that if plastic is not to be used for covering the material, what is the alternative for it. Instead of explaining it, they are going after the vendors," Nivangune said.
After the civic administration started the action against the vendors, the retailers in many parts of the city decided to close down their shops on Saturday. Some of these shops were open on Sunday but there is a sense of fear of action among the vendors, according to the association.
Niranjan Shah, who runs a general store said, "A fine of Rs 5,000 is a huge amount for a retailer. Some of the retailers will incur losses if they have to pay a fine of Rs 5,000. The government needs to revisit the amount of the fine."
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 "A squad of the civic body inspecting vendors after plastic ban, Mumbai")
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