PANAJI
Despite the lukewarm response to the drive to rid the use of plastic bags in the Panaji market, officials of the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) are enthusiastic that the ‘cloth bags on hire’ initiative launched on Monday will eventually succeed.
On day two of the initiative, market inspectors and other officials were seen going around creating awareness about the initiative both at the market and also at the Ashtami fair along the Mandovi riverfront.
“Today we have begun properly implementing the initiative. The idea is to eventually eliminate the use of plastic bags. The focus initially will be to make sure no plastic bags are available at all by enforcing the ban and imposing fines,” Deputy Mayor Sanjiv Naik said, adding that the move will eventually get popular but will take some time.
Naik also said, that once the plastic bags are unavailable, people will have no option but to carry their own bags to the market or opt to hire the cloth bags which will be widely available across the entire market.
On Monday, CCP Mayor Rohit Monserrate had launched the initiative “Amchi Poti” where cloth bags can be hired for a fee of Rs 20.
Separate stalls are being set up in the Panaji market from where the cloth bags can be rented for Rs 20. On returning these bags on the next market visit, the customer will be returned the Rs 20. Even if the bag is damaged or torn for some reason, the full deposit will be refunded.
These bags will be made from cloth donated to the RRR Center of the Municipal Corporation.
At the Ashtami fair, three stalls at various locations along the riverfront have been set up for renting the cloth bags. The initiative will be extended to the rest of the city at a later date, CCP officials said.
Plastic ban
The plastic ban will be strictly enforced in the Panaji Bazaar and the Ashtami fair by the CCP. A fine of Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 will be levied by market inspectors.
