top of page

By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

MVA protests for third day:

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies continued their agitation for the third day in different parts of Maharashtra with an aggressive state Congress hitting the streets today to protest the detention of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra and other Congress leaders yesterday, here on Wednesday. State and city Youth Congress again carried out vociferous protests near Mantralaya raising slogans, carrying banners and placards slamming the...

MVA protests for third day:

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies continued their agitation for the third day in different parts of Maharashtra with an aggressive state Congress hitting the streets today to protest the detention of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra and other Congress leaders yesterday, here on Wednesday. State and city Youth Congress again carried out vociferous protests near Mantralaya raising slogans, carrying banners and placards slamming the state and central Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and when some attempted to enter inside, they were prevented by a strong posse of Mumbai Police deployed there since Monday. As tensions appeared to escalate, the police clamped down by detaining top state and city Youth Congress leaders including President Harshwardhan Sapkal, Vijay Wadettiwar, Bhai Jagtap, Hussain Dalwai, and many others. Thousands of students carried out a fresh demonstration at Dadar west Shivaji Park to vent their ire at the police action on Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)’s agitation in New Delhi on Monday. Several MVA leaders and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray visited or expressed solidarity with the protesting youth, comprising many women. Opposition’s Voice The Congress leaders alleged that Rahul Gandhi was targeted by the BJP-led government to muzzle democratic dissent, suppress the Opposition voices inside and outside Parliament and trampling upon the peoples' Constitutional Rights to protest peacefully. Defying pouring rains in the city on Wednesday, Congress workers along with activists of MVA allies, staged a noisy demonstration in Chembur and another group attempted to storm the BJP office in south Mumbai, condemning the assault on students in New Delhi and the detention of the Gandhi siblings. Senior Congress leader Hussain Dalwai flayed the government for “misusing the police” to gag democratic rights and the protests were intended to defend the Constitution and democracy against the BJP’s policy of intolerance of dissent in any form. “This is gross injustice. We are not allowed to protest against the government failures as they are misusing the police. The PM is scared of taking the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as he could be the next. We want to highlight to the BJP to govern the country as per the Constitution,” Dalwai declared, interacting with the media at Nariman Point. As the BJP also threatened to launch counter-protests, the police cordoned off and deployed a precautionary security ring around Tilak Bhavan, the state Congress headquarters, as leaders from both sides exchanged political darts and looked aggressive enough for a confrontation. MVA ‘bandh’, ‘Tricolour’ march today The state is set for another two days of political turmoil as the MVA has announced a Maharashtra shutdown (‘bandh’) on Thursday followed by a non-partisan ‘Tricolour Peace March’ on Friday. MVA allies, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) President Prakash Ambedkar and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, besides other leaders of the alliance, informed of the state and city level actions today. Ambedkar appealed to the masses and also the BJP youth to participate wholeheartedly in the bandh tomorrow and claimed that students’ bodies, parent-teachers associations, colleges, universities, other institutes of higher education, private coaching institutions, and other governmental departments could support the shutdown, as it has now become a national issue. Aaditya sought the peoples’ participation in the ‘Tricolour Peace March’ on the theme of “One Nation, One Emotion” planned on July 24 afternoon to Shivaji Park, in support of environmentalist Sonam Wangchuk, the Cockroach Janta Party, plus the youth and students protesting in New Delhi. Terming it as a national citizens’ movement rather than a political party, he called upon the people not to carry any party flags but unite under the National Tricolour to assert democratic rights and express resentment against the government’s high-handed policies. Meanwhile, Mumbai Police have already imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 across the city from July 23-to- August 6, apprehending the possibility of law-and-order disturbances.

New Plastic Rules Push Producers Towards Circular Economy Goals

Comprehensive regulations alone cannot solve the plastic waste crisis. Their success will depend on credible enforcement and accountability.

Through previous articles in this series, we have learned that India's plastic waste management framework is primarily anchored by the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016. These rules have been continuously strengthened through major amendments in 2018, 2021, 2022, 2024-25, and most recently in April 2026.


The latest amendments mark a significant policy shift. Earlier, the focus was largely on collection and processing targets. The new framework increasingly emphasises the use of recycled plastic content, with mandatory minimum recycled content requirements rising from 30 per cent to 60 per cent by 2028-29. This signals a move from collection-centric regulation to market-driven compliance.


At the same time, some provisions may weaken accountability. For example, allowing companies to carry forward unmet targets could create "elastic" enforcement, reducing the pressure for timely compliance.


India generates an estimated 9 million tonnes of plastic waste every year. As a result, the central challenge is no longer policy design alone but ensuring credible monitoring, effective enforcement, and deeper integration of circular economy principles.


Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) remains the backbone of India's plastic waste management strategy. Based on the "Polluter Pays" principle, EPR shifts the responsibility for managing plastic waste from local municipalities to the companies that generate it.


The rules apply to PIBOs (Producers, Importers and Brand Owners) as well as PWPs (Plastic Waste Processors), including recyclers and waste-to-energy plants.


The following are the key provisions introduced under the latest amendment.


Mandatory Recycled Content

Category I: Rigid Plastic: This category includes hard plastics such as bottles, containers, tubes, and jars, which are generally easier to collect and recycle. Producers must ensure that recycled content constitutes at least 30 per cent of such packaging in 2025-26, with the requirement increasing to 60 per cent by 2028-29.


Category II: Flexible Plastic: This category covers single-layer and multi-layer sheets, cling films, carry bags, sachets, and stand-up pouches, including LDPE and zip-lock bags. The mandatory recycled content requirement starts at 10 per cent in 2025-26 and rises to 20 per cent by 2028-29.


Category III: Multi-layered Plastic: This includes packaging made of plastic combined with other materials such as aluminium foil, paper, or paperboard, commonly used for chip packets and instant food packaging. The recycled content target has been set at 5 per cent for 2025-26 and will increase to 10 per cent by 2028-29.


Companies that fail to meet their targets in 2025-26 can carry forward the shortfall for up to three years, until 2028-29. However, they must make up at least one-third of the deficit each year.


The rules also institutionalise a tradable credit system. Companies can fulfil their recycling obligations by purchasing credits from firms that exceed their prescribed targets.


While this provides flexibility and may reduce compliance costs, it also allows companies to meet obligations without directly recycling their own plastic waste. The risk of misuse remains significant. In 2023, the Central Pollution Control Board reported more than six lakh fake recycling certificates.


Compliance is monitored through a centralised Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) portal operated under the supervision of the Central Pollution Control Board. The portal is designed to facilitate registration, reporting, monitoring, and enforcement.


The shift to a digitised EPR platform has transformed corporate accountability by replacing opaque self-reporting mechanisms with a more verifiable, market-linked credit system. This institutional change encourages brand owners to internalise environmental costs and creates a formal economic incentive for plastic waste traceability and lifecycle management.


India's EPR framework is undergoing rapid formalisation. More than 60,000 Producers, Importers, and Brand Owners (PIBOs) are now registered on the centralised portal, improving traceability and expanding regulatory coverage across the plastic value chain.


The impact has been substantial. Since the EPR guidelines came into force in 2022, approximately 20.7 million tonnes of plastic packaging waste have been recycled.


More on this in my next article. Till then, have a nice weekend!


(The writer is an environmentalist. Views personal.)

 


Comments

bottom of page