Bhubaneswar: Kochilei Hata Pioneers in Pledging to Shun Use of Plastic Items

Bhubaneswar: The city authorities invite community support to prevent single use plastic within its jurisdiction. Vendors being the principal stakeholders in this movement have been approached to take part in the mobilization process.

A meeting in this regard has been organized today with the chairmanship of Mayor, BMC Sulochana Das in the premises of Kochilei Hata at Rasulgargh Chhak.

“We urge citizens to stop using single use plastic items for a better tomorrow and to increase liveability status of the city. It is high time to bring change in our mind set to get relief from banned items like plastic carry bags, ear buds, plastic flags, thermocol for decorations , plastic spoons, forks, straws, knives, invitation cards, cigarette packets and banners, candy/ ice cream sticks, plastic plates, cups, glasses, packaging and films around sweet box. Behaviour change is a two way process, only authority can’t bring changes through awareness and enforcement; it is community to visualise and decide for a change” the Mayor said.

As a strategic design this “Hata” has been chosen for community driven activities with regards to prevention of single use plastic items. It is the members of this market unit who will take lead in the campaign.

A 15 days’ time is designed to do public awareness and sensitize fellow vendors. Initially it may affect vendor costumer relation but latter period will set the example and in achieving the objective the members of this market will be invited for awareness in other parts of the city. In turn the market will act as a change agent for the cause; told Addl. Commissioner Suvendu Kumar Sahoo.

Taking part in the meeting the market association president Rajkumar Routray and Secretary Pradip Jena assured team BMC to make the area free of single use plastic and motivate others in this regards. As mark of the movement 50 members of the association present in the meeting welcomed the campaign .To mark the occasion, cotton bags carrying the message of preventing single use plastic items were distributed to vendors and customers by tem BMC.

Among other dignitaries, there were Sanitation standing Committee Chairman Biranchi Narayan Mahasupakar, Establishment Standing Committee Chairman Kumarendra Mohapatra , ZDC SE Zone Priyabrata Padhi and DC, market Akshyaya Kumar Lenka.