Mangaluru: The Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC), in association with other organisations, launched a campaign to promote waste segregation at source, and to create awareness against single-use plastic in the city on Friday.The campaign, launched in association with Sri Ambamaheswari Seva Trust and Hasiru Dala, aimed at creating awareness about the ban on the use of single-use plastic carry bags, and the responsibility of households in handing over-segregated waste to the swachhata workers of the city corporation. The drive will cover 36,650 houses that come under the Kadri Zone-3 of MCC.
Rekha Shetty, MCC zonal commissioner (Zone-3), said that members of the Sri Ambamaheswari Seva Trust and Hasiru Dala, along with the multipurpose workers of the city corporation, will visit all the houses in the zone in the next one month. After creating awareness about waste segregation, the volunteers will distribute stickers affirming the commitment of each household to hand over segregated waste to the MCC staff. The officer also warned those who use single-use plastic bags.“The MCC has taken the issue of the use of single-use plastic carry bags by shops, business establishments and eateries very seriously. Shops, eateries, and other establishments should not encourage the use of single-use plastic bags on their premises. The city corporation will impose a fine of up to Rs 10,000 if they fail to comply with the rules,” she said.Shetty also appreciated residents who regularly hand over segregated waste. “The majority of the households in the zone were segregating dry and wet waste while handing it over to the MCC staff. We will encourage them to continue the practice while motivating others,” she added.MCC commissioner Ravichandra Naik called upon citizens to adopt best practices when it comes to maintaining cleanliness in the city. On the collection of fines, the commissioner said that it is not a revenue generation process; rather, the move is aimed at making people inculcate the habit of using bags made of cloth or other eco-friendly materials.On the first day, the volunteers visited 1,000 houses in the Kadri area in the zone.The members of Hasiru Dala participated in MCC’s awareness drive, with a team led by Nagaraj Bajal presenting a street play in front of the MCC shopping complex in Kadri to educate people on best practices of waste disposal.
