Punjab Pollution Control Board took a crucial step in its mission to keep Punjab clean and free from plastic pollution. We conducted a state-wide “Plastic Waste Brand Audit”, a first of its kind in India, across six major cities of Punjab. The results were clear and deeply concerning: just 14 major national and multinational FMCG brands were responsible for nearly 59% of hard-to-recycle plastic waste going to dumpsites.
Yesterday, we summoned these companies and gave them a months’ notice to present tangible, time-bound, verifiable solutions to reduce, redesign, and reclaim their plastic waste. Meeting EPR targets only on paper is no longer acceptable. Our audit clearly demonstrated that a large portion of their plastic waste is still not being collected or processed responsibly under Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) rules.
Our goal is simple – clean streets, clean rivers, clean air and healthier communities. We are encouraging members of the industry to move beyond just compliance and think beyond business-as-usual by innovating in new, easy-to-recycle packaging materials, introducing reuse models, community-level return systems, and scalable circular solutions, etc.
To everyone reading this: Punjab cannot solve this alone. What bold, practically viable, and creative solutions can help us eliminate plastic waste from our streets? I’d love to hear your ideas. I encourage you to share your thoughts.