NEWS

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has proposed to impose a ban on all types of plastic bags which are thinner than 50 microns. Going one step ahead to curb the menace, the civic body plans to include thermocol and metal plastic under the purview of the ban.Leader of the civic house Sunil Prabhu moved a notice of motion in the house on Thursday, which will come up for discussion on Jan 7, 2010. “The existing rule only bans carry bags having self-handle carrying features,” said Prabhu. “The provision exempts packing bags which do not have a handle but are made of thin plastic (less than 50 microns). All the malls and departmental stores use bags without handles. The thin plastic is also used to wrap goods, and unfortunately it has not come under the purview of the rule. These bags are equally dangerous since they choke the drains and cause great damage,” said Prabhu. According to Prabhu, the rule does not include any clear instructions about the use of thermocol and metal plastic, which are equally dangerous.