New Delhi: Stepping up its anti-plastic campaign, the BJP-led South Delhi Municipal Corporation on Monday declared the Tagore Garden fruits and vegetable market as its “first plastic-free market”, officials said. Mayor Sunita said the SDMC is setting an example by achieving plastic-free status for this market and aiming to reduce plastic waste by “promoting use of eco-friendly and sustainable alternatives”. As the part of its initiative towards environmental protection in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pledge to shun single-use plastic, the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) on Monday declared its first plastic-free market, the officials said.
So, Tagore Garden fruits and vegetable market in West Zone has become the first market to attain plastic-free status under the SDMC, the corporation said.
Chairman of the SDMC’s Standing Committee Bhupender Gupta, Chairman of West Zone Committee Kailash Sankla, local councilor Sushma Chopra, Deputy Commissioner Shrish Sharma and other senior officials were also present on the occasion.
Mr. Gupta urged shopkeepers to put up a board at their shops appealing to customers to carry cloth and jute bags.
He said the SDMC has organised various activities within the market in order to promote the message of shunning plastic.
Our first aim was to convince small shopkeepers to be the part of the single-use plastic ban campaign and shun polythene carry bags, and opt for cloth and jute bags. This is the common belief that making a small fruits and vegetable market quit polythene bags is an unachievable task, but we wanted to challenge this reality and show people that these markets can also move towards greener and cleaner India, Mr. Gupta said.
NDTV – Dettol Banega Swachh India campaign lends support to the Government of India’s Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). Helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan, the campaign aims to spread awareness about hygiene and sanitation, the importance of building toilets and making India open defecation free (ODF) by October 2019, a target set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, when he launched Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in 2014. Over the years, the campaign has widened its scope to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and menstrual hygiene. The campaign has also focused extensively on marine pollution, clean Ganga Project and rejuvenation of Yamuna, two of India’s major river bodies.
