Plastic bags banned in MP to save cows

With a move to save cows from death by plastic and to stop environmental pollution, the Madhya Pradesh Government has banned plastic bags with effect from May 1 this year. However, there is some confusion among the manufacturers as the government has not specified whether plastic bags of a certain thickness would be allowed. Environmentalists have hailed the ban which the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government had imposed on January 1 declaring tourist destinations and holy cities in MP polythene-free. Legislative affairs and public relations minister Narottam Mishra said that increasing deaths among cattle due to the consumption of plastic was a cause of grave concern. Hence, it was unanimously decided to ban polythene bags across the state from May 1. The cabinet took this decision in response to the directives issued by the National Green Tribunal during hearing of a case filed by an environmentalist. On Republic Day, the CM had announced a total ban on polythene from May 1 An official from the the pollution control board — the agency that will enforce the ban — was clueless whether only thin plastic bags have to be banned and are waiting for further orders.