New Delhi, 1 June

The National Green Tribunal has sought a reply from the Centre regarding the strict enforcement of the Plastic Waste Management Rules by the manufacturers of gutkha, pan masala and tobacco products.

A bench of NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member A Senthil Vel noted the submissions of the petitioner's counsel that in October 2021, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) issued certain directions to 25 such manufacturers, including immediately closing down operations until they switched to environmentally sound alternatives, which were not complied with.

The bench, in its order dated 30 May, noted that according to the counsel, Anuj Aggarwal, certain provisions of the plastic waste management rules were being flouted.

These included the clause that "sachets using plastic material shall not be used for storing, packing or selling gutkha, tobacco and pan masala" and "plastic material, in any form including vinyl acetate, maleic acid, vinyl chloride copolymer (used in plastic coating) shall not be used in any package for packaging gutkha, pan masala and tobacco in all forms", the bench noted.

It also noted the submission that these manufacturers were not complying with the Extended Producers' Responsibility (EPR) regime under the Plastic Waste Management Rules, which stipulated environmentally sound management of products, particularly at the end of their life cycle.

The respondents in the matter are the Centre, Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) and some pan masala and supari manufacturers.