Times of India

Plastic ban: 21 challans issued
Neha Lalchandani, TNN 18 July 2009,NEW DELHI:

Implementation of the plastic bag ban in the city has resulted in 21 challans being issued in the last one week. The Delhi Pollution

Control Committee (DPCC) will take the offenders in court by next week. A recent statement by environment minister Jairam Ramesh against a total ban on plastic bags appears to have propelled the Delhi government into implementing the ban seriously in the capital.

Six months after the ban was notified, the government issued its first challans on July 11. Of the 21 challans, 20 have been issued by DPCC while one was issued by an SDM. Reports from other agencies like MCD, NDMC and the health department are yet to come in. "Of the 20 challans issued by DPCC, 16 were issued in Rajouri Garden and South Extension. On Friday, four more were issued in Model Town,'' said a DPCC official.

According to sources, the department will file complaints against the offenders in designated courts by either Monday or Tuesday. "Since this is just the start of the drive, all challans issued till now will be taken to court collectively. Offenders will be charged under the Environment Protection Act, 1986 and stand to be slapped with a penalty of a maximum of Rs 1 lakh or 5 years imprisonment,'' said the official. The mode of punishment for offenders, however, can prove to be a long drawn out affair.