Govt. readies statewide drive against single-use plastic

Dimapur, Sep. 30 (EMN): The chief secretary of Nagaland Temjen Toy convened a meeting of administrative and departmental heads to discuss matter relating to the sanitation campaign “Swachhata Hi Seva” for 2019. The meeting was conducted in the Secretariat on September 30 in Kohima, updates stated.
The government publicity agency the department of Information and Public Relations (IPR) issued updates to the media on Monday informing about the meeting.

Toy highlighted the importance of getting rid of single-use plastic. He said that on October 2 there will be “disposal of plastic particularly in the form of garbage,” which will be sent to a cement factory to be taken care of by the Urban Development department, the updates stated.

The principal secretary for Urban Development and Municipal Affairs, Himato Zhimomi, spoke about the entire exercise of ‘Swachhata Hi Seva’ or ‘cleanliness is service,’ commemorating the ‘150th year of celebrating the Mahatma’ from September 11 to October 2 2019. He said that the event would culminate on October 27.

Officials from various departments gave their views and opinions about the exercise, the IPR stated.

General instruction for departments
• Declare all levels of office single-use plastic-free.
• Take the Swachhata Hi Seva pledge in all level of office.
• Actively participate in the plastic waste collection drive on October 2.
• Issue instructions to all levels of office against burning plastic.
• Submit report with good quality photographs and videos in both hard and soft copies to be uploaded on the Swachh Manch website. Also, they are to provide information about the quantity of plastic waste that is collected.

Specific instructions to departments
Rural Development and Public Health Engineering
• Awareness campaigns in all villages.
• Setting adequate plastic collection centres in all villages.
• Collection and segregation of waste in all villages on October 2.
• Transport collected plastic waste from the villages to the ULB material recovery facility (MRF) by Oct. 7.

Urban & Municipal department
• Awareness campaigns in all urban areas.
• Set up sufficient plastic collection centres in all the wards to deposit plastic waste.
• Set up sheltered material recovery facility in each urban local body area.
• Collect and transport plastic wastes from ward level collection centres to the MRF.
• Furnish report along with good quality photographs and clippings in both hard and soft copies to the Urban Development department.
• Organise mass plastic waste collection drives on Oct. 2 in all the urban local body areas.
• Provide information about the quantity of collected plastic waste.

School and Higher Education institutions
• Awareness campaigns in all schools and colleges.
• Administer pledge to students and school authorities.
• Set up adequate number of plastic collection centres in schools and colleges to deposit plastic waste.
• Organise mass plastic waste collection drives on Oct. 2.
• Furnish report along with good quality photographs and clippings in both hard and soft copies to the department in concern.

PWD- National Highways and Road & Bridges
• Organise mass plastic waste collection drives throughout the state on Oct. 2 on all state highways and national highways along roads and drainages.
• Transport plastic waste collected from the highways to the urban local body MRF by Oct. 7.
• Furnish report along with good quality photographs.
• Explore the possibility of using plastic waste in road construction.

Police and paramilitary
• Organise plastic waste collection drives throughout the state on Oct. 2 in the offices, battalion units and camp areas.
• Assist district administration by providing workforce and resources.

Industries & Commerce:
• Identity and assist entrepreneurs and self-help groups to manufacture alternative products for plastic bags.

Tourism, Sports & Youth Resources, Art & Culture
• Organise cleanliness drives for plastic waste in all hotels, lodges, tourist destinations, play grounds and stadiums.
• Instruct hotels and restaurants to declare their establishments single-use plastic-free and to carry out plastic cleanliness drives in their respective premises.

Health & Family Welfare
• Organise plastic waste collection drives throughout the state on October 2 in all government or private hospitals/clinics.