Madras High Court Bans 28 Plastic Items In Kodaikanal And Nilgiris

The Madras High Court has banned the manufacture, storage, supply, transport, sale, and distribution of 28 items of plastic throughout the Western Ghats, sanctuaries, and tiger reserves, starting from the Nilgiris up to the Agathiyar Biosphere in Kanyakumari District, which includes the Nilgiris and Kodaikanal hill areas. The forest bench of Justice N Satish Kumar and Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy has banned the following items: (1) Plastic pet bottles for packaged drinking water, mineral water, juices, etc, (one time use) (2) Plastic sheet / cling film used for food wrapping (3) Plastic sheet used for spreading on dining table (4) Plastic Thermocol plates (5) Plastic coated paper plates (6) Plastic coated paper cups (7) Plastic tea cups (8) Plastic tumbler (9) Thermocol cups (10) Plastic coated carry bags (11) Non-woven Carry Bags (12) Water pouches/packets (13) Plastic straw (14) Plastic flags (15) Ear buds with plastic sticks (16) Plastic carry bags of all size & thickness (17) Candy with plastic sticks (18) Ice-cream with plastic sticks (19) Polystyrene for decoration (20) Cutlery such as plastic forks (21) Plastic spoons (22) Plastic knives (23) Wrapping or packaging films around sweet boxes (24) Wrapping or packaging films around invitation cards (25) Wrapping or packaging films around cigarette packets (26) Plastic or PVC banners less than 100 micron (27) Plastic stirrers (28) Plastic trays Prohibiting the transport of the plastic items to the area, the court also asked the state government to issue notification under Section 67(3) [Power of State Government to control road transport] and to add a condition to the permit mandating that no vehicles shall be used for transport or distribution of banned items along the Western Ghats and sanctuaries. The court added that vehicles found transporting the banned items should be detained and action be initiated against the persons. The court also suggested that the shop owners, vendors and other persons involved in the distribution of consumables packed in non-biodegradable packaging should open the packets, transfer the contents to biodegradable paper covers or may use natural products like leaf products, kora grass products, earthen products etc. The court asked the District Collectors to identify the manufacturers, conduct meetings and develop schemes for returning the packaging materials to the manufacturers for safe disposal. The court added that a scheme could be developed involving the manufacturers and including funds for local authorities to cover expenses incurred with them. The court directed the District Collectors and other authorities to ensure availability of drinking water through ATMs, RO plants and other methods. The court said that a deposit return system could be implemented, providing reusable cups, tumblers, steel bottles, food containers, and tiffin carriers of various sizes to tourists and the general public upon payment of a small deposit of Rs. 20/-or Rs. 50/-. The deposit will be refunded upon returning the items. The court also suggested that innovative schemes like developing a tourist bag kit could be taken up as part of the Government's “Meendum Manjappai” scheme including reusable bottles, cloth bags for purchases, and cutlery to promote sustainable eating habits, along with sellable items like eco-friendly straws, napkins, and small containers for food storage, all aimed at encouraging sustainable tourism practices. The court added that the authorities could continue creating awareness by establishing vantage points in every 2 kms guiding the tourists, and checking for plastic items. The court said these centres could be used for promoting ideas of sustainable development, and preservation of flora and fauna. Making these vantage points mandatory in Nilgiris and Kodaikanal, the court said that it could also be expanded to other hill areas, and the western ghats, sanctuaries, and Tiger Reserves. In case of any violations, strict fines should be imposed. The court made the directions after noting that, though it had issued orders banning PET bottles and other plastic waste in the area, the plastic waste was strewn everywhere throughout the western ghats and were posing a grave threat to the environment and the local flaura and fauna. Counsel for Petitioner: Mr. T. V. Suresh Kumar M/s Genicon & Associates Counsel for Respondent: Mr. T. Seenivasan Spl.GP, Mrs. A. Sri Jeyanthi For R4 Mr. R. Srinivas, SC for Mr. K. Madhan, Mr. V. Chandrasekaran, SPC, M/s.T. Mohan, Senior Counsel and Mr. M. Santhanaraman Amicus Curiae Mr. C. Mohan, Amicus Curiae Mr. Rahul Balaji, Amicus Curiae Case Title: G Subramania Koushik v. The Principal Secretary and Others Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Mad) 142 Case No: W.M.P.No.15112 of 2019 in W.P. No. 15120 of 2019Click Here To Read/Download The Order

Madras High Court Bans 28 Plastic Items In Kodaikanal And Nilgiris

Upasana Sajeev

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