Photo : Collected
Golam Rabbi, a resident of New Eskaton, Dhaka, engaged in a dispute with an attendant at the cash counter of a Shwapno super shop outlet in the area over a Tk 11 charge for a jute bag.
The altercation arose after the government banned the use of polyethylene bags in such shops from October 1, 2024.
Ultimately, Rabbi left the outlet without purchasing grocery items worth about Tk 1,300, upset by the Tk 11 charge for the jute bag.
The sales operators tried to explain by showing him the government order banning plastic bags in super shops, but he remained unconvinced.
Incidents like this are becoming common as sales operators now supply fish, meat, and other frozen items in paper bags instead of polybags following the government's embargo on plastic bags in super shops.
Bangladesh generates about 87,000 tonnes of single-use plastics annually, much of which ends up as waste. As a result, the government has begun enforcing a ban on single-use plastics as part of broader efforts to reduce plastic waste, starting with grocery bags.
Experts said that Bangladesh has been grappling with a significant plastic pollution problem. The country's rapid industrialization and growing population have increased demand for plastic products.
This, coupled with inadequate waste management infrastructure, has led to widespread plastic pollution, particularly in urban areas and waterways, they added.
In response to this issue, the interim government issued a gazette notification on August 27, 2024, to phase out single-use plastics (SUP) in 17 sectors, in accordance with an order from the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change issued on June 20, 2024.
The notification instructs immediate implementation of the ban to protect the environment and reduce pollution.
Messenger/Disha
