GUWAHATI: The annual flood problem in Assam may be attributed to geographical and topological reasons, but Guwahati’s urban flooding is primarily due to a lack of effort by authorities and the public alike.
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Even though the Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) along with the Pollution Control Board of Assam (PCBA) took the initiative to ban single-use plastic from June 1, 2022, its usage is still rampant.
In a meeting in July 2023, the Assam cabinet also decided to ban production and use of drinking water bottles made of Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) less than 1 liter in volume from October 2, 2023.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on October 1 announced an extension of the state's water bottle ban for a year, addressing the concerns of youth entrepreneurs who had requested him time to upgrade their manufacturing machinery.
"After we initially announced the ban on water bottles below 1 litre to combat plastic waste, we received requests from a group of enterprising indigenous youngsters who had established water bottling industries specializing in 500ml bottles. They sought an extension of the ban implementation, citing the need for time to upgrade their manufacturing machinery," media quoted CM Sarma saying.
These 500 ml plastic bottles, along with other forms of single-use plastic, have become a menace for Guwahati’s drainage system. The city’s drains are choked with plastic, PET bottles, and other debris, and can only be cleared during the annual desiltation drives.
GPlus conducted a poll on its social media platforms asking the people of Guwahati if they think ₹10 plastic bottles are one of the major reasons for clogging of Guwahati's drains, resulting in urban flooding.
The majority of the people agreed that indeed it is one of the primary reasons for clogging of Guwahati’s drains. 67% of respondents agreed, whereas 26.4% disagreed, while 6.6% offered no opinion on X (formerly Twitter).
On Facebook and Instagram, 77% and 79% of respondents agreed to the ₹10 bottle’s contribution to the problem, while 17% and 18% disagreed, respectively.
Similarly, on WhatsApp and the GPlus App, the majority of people agreed that PET bottles are one of the contributing factors to Guwahati’s urban flooding problem.
However, many also highlighted how the common people have been irresponsible when it comes to civic sense.
Ishaan Jain, an user on Instagram commented, “If the people use dustbins and not drains, most of it is collected-segregated-recycled. People/media/govt need to come along and start finding and focusing on solutions and implementation rather than blaming the usage or existence imo.”
Another user Timothy Pautu commented, “Actually it's not abt 10₹ plastic bottles. We people do clean over front compound which is visible but never try to clean the backyard which is not visible and just dump everything no matter what. It’s drain obviously it will self clean with the water.”
Another user commented, “It’s not the plastic bottles , it’s the people who are clogging the drains of Guwahati.”
Talking to GPlus, a senior official at the Pollution Control Board of Assam (PCBA) said, “The Guwahati Municipal Corporation, district administration, and others should enforce the ban properly. We alone can’t do anything. It has to be a collective effort. Even today, shops and godowns are raided, but these people are not taking it seriously. The fine should be increased; maybe then they will understand the gravity of the situation.”
On being asked about what the solution could be, the official continued, “GMC should collect plastic waste at least twice a week. This would also help them in recycling. Right now, they are not segregating the plastic waste. This can only be done if infrastructure is developed by the authorities across the city.”
“We cannot keep blaming the common people. They are aware that throwing plastic bottles is bad, but what can they do if there are no adequate garbage bins or stations available? GMC is not doing a good enough job; they have to do better than this,” he further added.
Talking to GPlus, Mayor Mrigen Sarania also highlighted that the plastic bottles should be banned completely. “People throw the bottles in the drains even if there is a garbage bin around. This nature has to change, only then this problem will get sorted.”
The stubborn persistence of single-use plastics and PET bottles, despite all the bans and regulations, paints a clear picture of policy implementation going down the drain. What is needed is a collective wake-up call from both authorities and public.
