GB govt imposes ban on use of plastic bags  

Gilgit: The Gilgit Baltistan Administration has imposed a ban on the use of plastic shoppers within the limits of district from 1st January 2023.

This important decision was taken by GB Administration headed by Chief Secretary Mohyuddin Ahmed Wani to make Gilgit plastic-free district.

The district administration has created awareness against use of polythene bags through media campaigns and erected billboards inscribed slogans against polythene shoppers.

The Gilgit administration distributed cloth bags among the shopkeepers in NLI and other markets.

They appealed to the shopkeepers to avoid sale and use of plastic shoppers to make Gilgit pollution free.

However, the Administration warned that action will be taken against those who violate the order.

The GB administration has further decided to expand the drive against use of polythene to other districts after Gilgit in phase wise.

According to United Nations report, by July 2018, some 127 countries had already implemented some type of policy regulating plastic bags. 

It is imperative to note that the Sindh government had imposed a ban on the manufacturing, sale, purchase and use of polythene bags in 1994. Punjab followed suit in 1995 while Balochistan levied a complete ban on polythene bags in 2001. 

Islamabad also banned the use and sale of plastic bags in 2013. 

Polyethylene—commonly used to make plastic bags—was created accidentally in a chemical plant in a small British town in 1933 and was secretly used by the British military in World War II. 

These plastic bags are difficult to recycle and mostly end up on landfill sites where they take around 300 years to photodegrade. They break down into tiny toxic particles that contaminate the soil and waterways and enter the food chain.