DNA Explainer: India's policy on plastic ban by 2022 - what is single-use plastic

The use of plastic is one of the biggest causes of environmental pollution all around the world. While many countries have stopped the use of plastic, India continues to use them unabated. We all remember the devastating floods in Uttarakhand in 2013, which led to an enormous loss of lives and property.

But how many of us know that this natural calamity was to a great extent manmade and not that natural. The idea that imperishable plastic is a hazard to the environment is something we fail to understand. We litter our neighbourhood and even the beautiful tourist places we go to enjoy our holidays.

Now the government seems to take cognizance of the hazards of plastic which has led it to bring the Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules 2021. The Union environment ministry has notified the prohibition of the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale, and use of certain single-use plastic items with low utility and high littering potential by 2022.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), India produces over 25,000 tonnes of plastic waste every day. 

What the new rule says

A central government committee has identified the single-use plastic items to be banned based on an index of their utility and environmental impact. It will be a three-stage ban.

Single-use plastic has been defined as disposable plastics that are commonly used for packaging and include items intended to be used only once before they are thrown away or recycled.

The manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale, and use of some single-use plastic products including polystyrene and expanded polystyrene shall be prohibited from July 1, 2022. 

The first category of single-use plastic items proposed to be phased out are plastic sticks used in balloons, flags, candy, ice cream and earbuds, and thermocol that is used in decorations.

Plates, cups, glasses, forks, spoons, knives, straws, trays, wrapping and packing films used in sweet boxes, invitation cards, cigarette packets, stirrers and plastic banners that are less than 100 microns in thickness will be removed in the second phase.

The third category of prohibition is for non-woven bags below 240 microns in thickness which are widely used as shopping bags and will be removed in the third phase.

From September 30, 2021, the thickness of plastic carry bags will be increased from 50 microns to 75 microns and 120 microns. This will also allow the reuse of plastic carry bags due to an increase in thickness.

PM Modi's efforts to ban single-use plastic bags

During the 4th United Nations Environment Assembly held in 2019, India moved a resolution on addressing single-use plastic products pollution by 2022.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that single-use plastic is one of the major causes of degradation of the environment. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on people to stop the use of single-use plastic bags in his Independence Day speech in 2019.

PM Modi was conferred the 'champions of the earth' award by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2018 for pledging to eliminate all single-use plastic by 2022.