On patrol with India’s anti-plastic ‘blue squad’

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MUMBAI, Oct 2, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Wearing matching blue Nehru jackets, the
dozen inspectors fan out across Mumbai’s hectic Crawford Market, each
scouring for violators of an ambitious plastic ban.

It doesn’t take Mahindra Wayangankar long to find one: a dry fruits
seller, wrapping his wares in plastic, is hit with a hefty 5,000-rupee ($69)
fine.

Wayangankar, 50, is one of 311 officials dubbed the “blue squad” and
tasked with enforcing a recent ban on single-use plastics in India’s
commercial capital.

“The job is very stressful. When we fine traders and shopkeepers there is
some form of resistance or violence in 99 percent of cases,” he tells AFP.

“It is difficult to work in such situations. Since the amount is huge,
people don’t pay up easily.

“(But) we are happy doing this job because it helps society and protects
the environment. Our goal is not just to raise revenue but create awareness
too,” he adds.

Mumbai, a bustling coastal city of 20 million people, has long been awash
with vast mountains of plastic rubbish, like many urban centres in India.

Plastic is regularly blamed for blocking drains and contributing to
flooding during the city’s four-month-long summer monsoon.

Earlier this year, authorities decided something had to be done and
introduced a ban across Maharashtra state, of which Mumbai is the capital.

The rules, which came into force at the end of June, prohibit the use of
disposable plastic items such as bags, cutlery, cups and bottles under a
certain size.

Businesses and residents face fines of between 5,000 rupees for a first-
time offence to 25,000 rupees or even three months in jail for repeat
offending.

Officials say citizens are already seeing the benefits of the ban.

Nidhi Choudhari, a deputy municipal commissioner in charge of enforcing
it, told AFP that 11.6 million rupees ($159,326) in fines had been collected
and over 21 tonnes of plastic seized.

– Secret raids –

A walk through Crawford Market and visits to grocery stores and food
stalls suggest many traders have switched to cloth bags and paper straws.

But others continue to violate the ban and large piles of plastic items
can still be seen on the city’s beaches and streets.

Retailers associations complain that confusion over what is and isn’t
permitted has led some shopkeepers to be unfairly fined.

Traders also say that a lack of cheap alternatives has hurt their
businesses, threatening livelihoods.

Kombaiyya S., a street vendor, used to package takeaway orders of his
Indian rice cakes and stew for office workers in small plastic bags.

“I’ve lost most of my client base,” he told AFP.

The United Nations has warned that the world could have 12 billion tonnes
of plastic trash by the middle of the century if use is maintained at current
levels.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has pledged to make India free of single-use
plastic by 2022.

But while the majority of India’s 29 states have a full or partial ban on
single-use plastics, the law is rarely enforced.

Members of the blue squad say they are too small in number to rid Mumbai
of all its plastic, but are determined to do what they can.

A surprise inspection of a popular Hindu temple last week, which resulted
in several fines, highlighted that nowhere is off limits.

“We will up the secret raids,” Sangita R. Hasnale, an assistant
commissioner at the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, told AFP.

“Within one year I think you will be able to give us a 90 percent pass
rate.”