Shun Single-Use Plastic Items, CS Urges People

Telangana Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari today called for a voluntary ban on single-use-plastic, which she said had become a danger to the environment.

She expressed concern that only 9% of the currently used plastic was being re-cycled and the rest of the plastic waste ended up in canals, ponds and river waters, posing a great threat to mankind, and emphasised the need for using steel and porcelain items instead of single-use-plastic items.

A one-day workshop was held today at the Secretariat on banning single-use plastic. Advisor to Government and Chairman of the Pollution Control Board Rajeev Sharma, Special Chief Secretaries, and Principal Secretaries and Secretaries of various departments participated in the workshop.

Speaking on the occasion, Kumari said that the government had already issued several orders banning single-use-plastic, and that the officials now needed to set an example by voluntarily following the plastic ban at the Secretariat.

"17 lakh self-help group women in 142 municipalities and corporations of the State are already sensitizing citizens on the single-use plastic ban. Plastic waste is also being separated from garbage in every village. Now, we in the Secretariat too should set an example by voluntarily abjuring the use of single-use plastic and using alternatives. Plastic is being used in water bottles, covers, plates, cups, glasses and straws, and instead of these, steel and porcelain items should be used. This cannot be done only through government orders, and should be followed voluntarily with social responsibility," she said.

Rajeev Sharma said that there were committees at the district level for the ban of single-use plastic, and that public awareness programs should be undertaken on a wider scale to make everyone work with social responsibility to make the State single-use-plastic-free.

Later, Kumari inaugurated an exhibition on alternative materials used in place of plastic goods, and Sharma unveiled a poster designed with the slogan for banning single-use-plastic and saving the earth.