New Delhi: In a bid to reduce the usage of single-use plastic bags, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin launched the "Meendum Manjappai" campaign which aims at creating awareness about the usage of cloth bags and the cons of plastic bags usage.


The Tamil Nadu government has already banned 14 types of plastic materials. Single-use plastic bags refer to disposable polyethylene bags which are thrown or recycled after using once.


The cloth bag-making units of Pudukottai, Kancheepuram, Salem, Erode, and Dindigul have become vibrant with orders pouring in from wholesale and retail traders across the state.


Many major cloth shops and textile majors are also shifting their priorities to cloth and jute bags instead of plastic bags.


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The government is also roping in the service of several NGOs to create awareness of using cloth and jute bags instead of plastic throw-away bags and the necessity to preserve the environment as studies have revealed that plastic bags take centuries to decay and how dangerous it was for the environment.

S. Santosh, who is heading the Environment department of Centre for Policy and Development Studies, a think tank and a research centre based out of Chennai while speaking to IANS said: "We have already conducted three rounds of meeting with the state environment department and will soon undertake a campaign across the state against the use of plastic carry bags and how dangerous it was for our environment."


Plastic production and usage have grown leaps and bounds in the past decade and is expected to stay for the coming decades according to the UN. About 60 per cent of plastic waste is collected in India per year, while the remaining 40 per cent goes unfiltered. However, many nations across the world have come to a situation of not being able to handle the plastic waste that ultimately ends up injuring the other living beings on the globe.


(With inputs from IANS)