The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has banned the use of plastic
bottles around the banks of Uttarakhand here to check the menace of pollution
in and around the river Ganges, an official said on Monday. This has been necessitated as devotees
and visitors bringing plastic water bottles along with them throw them near the
banks, he said. The
littering causes these bottles to settle on the river bed, causing great harm
to the river, the official added. The
NGT has asked the state government to ensure ban on sale of plastic bottles
near the Ganges and shutdown all shops selling them.