Odisha: Over 1.5 tonne single-use plastics seized in Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: More than 1.5 tonnes of single-use plastic items were seized from Damana area of Bhubaneswar city in Odisha today.

An enforcement team of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) found the banned items from a building near Damana market during a routine inspection, sources said.

“Members of the Central Enforcement Team of the BMC found 1.5 tonnes of single-use plastic glass, thermocol utensils, polythene bags and other banned items from a building near Damana market during routine inspection,” said an official.

The enforcement team had seized single-use plastic items from the same building last year, said BMC Additional Commissioner Suvendu Kumar Sahoo.

“We have traced the person involved in the illegal storage of single-use plastic items and imposed a penalty of Rs 25,000 on him,” Sahoo added.

BMC sources, meanwhile, claimed that the enforcement teams of the civic body have seized more than 3.5 tonnes of single-use plastic items from various places in the capital city from October, 2022 to March, 2023. Penalties worth Rs 3.85 lakh have been collected from the violators, said the official.

The seized items include ear buds with plastic sticks, plastic sticks for balloons, plastic flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, thermocol for decoration, plastic plates, cups, glasses and plastic cutlery items like forks, spoons, knives, straws and trays, sources said.