Forgotten ban

It is true that most Goans still prefer to dispose garbage and junk in plastic bags. Old habits die hard and this is where the administration comes in. Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar had recently appealed to all citizens to join hands with the government in its mission to make the State pastic-free by 2020. But this appears to easier said than done.
We must remember that there is a plastic ban in force where plastic bags below 50 micron thickness are banned from use at a few prominent places across the State. But even after 15 years since the prohibition was announced, the notification and subsequent amendments had no impact, neither is there any serious enforcement to that effect. Such ambitious plans come into sharp focus because there is no follow up action from the administration throwing a question whether the government is really serious in wiping out plastic by 2020. Citizens begin to question if these plans which are unveiled mostly on Independence Day or Gandhi Jayanti are mere occasional statements where several politicians take the broom for a photo-op or make sweeping statements on how they plan to go about making the State litter-free in the next few years. Much after all the grandiose vision statements, there is literally nothing that is being achieved and everything seems to have been lost somewhere.
There has been a plastic ban in areas like the wildlife sanctuaries, Miramar beach stretch, the tourism jetty below the Mandovi bridges, all parks and gardens, municipal limits of Mormugao, Carambolim & Mayem lake, the Legislative Assembly and Secretariat Complex, University and the new Collectorate building in Margao. There is litter of plastic across the places notified with no enforcement, except for that odd raid. If there was an intent to keep at least these notified places plastic-free, it would set the tone for the larger vision of 2020.
Announcements are easy to make, but implementation is the challenge. Similar is the case with government's plan to make Goa open-defecation free. There is a vision, but the infrastructure which is crucial in this case is lacking. Announcements like these which set an ambitious deadline and
give a clarion call to the people to join hands will not help. There certainly needs to be strict enforcement to stop use of such plastics. Government should have a plan of action. There need to be viable alternatives to the plastic which are banned.
Plastic below 50 microns is being used primarily because it is cheap and easily available. There is reason enough to switch to other alternatives if options are provided. All is not lost, the administration must start enforcing the 2002 notification on plastic ban if the government is serious about its mission 2020.