More than a year since the plastic ban came into force in the state, and the buyback scheme for plastic milk pouches will start within a month’s time. Environment minister Ramdas Kadam told the state Legislative Assembly on Thursday that he had recently held a meeting with milk producers and they had agreed to the government notification of charging consumers 50 paise as deposit money when buying Plastic Injection Part Molding milk pouches.Under this scheme, the buyer, while purchasing the milk pouch, will have to deposit 50 paise which he or she will get back after returning the bag to the seller.The state government imposed a ban on the manufacture, use, sale, distribution and storage of plastic materials such as one-time-use bags, spoons, plates, PET and PETE bottles, and thermocol items on March 23 last year."The money will be deposited with the seller and after giving back the empty pouch the next day, consumers can take back their money. Else, they can keep the money and buy another pouch," said the minister.Mr Kadam also said that the amount of milk being purchased did not matter and that the charges would be a flat 50 paise per pouch, irrespective of the quantity. The implementation of the scheme would start within a month’s time.The minister pointed out that one crore plastic bags were thrown on the streets and 31 tonnes of plastic garbage was generated daily. He claimed that nearly 80 per cent of the plastic came into Mahara-shtra from the neighbouring state of Gujarat.He said he had personally visited the Maharashtra—Gujarat border to take action against trucks ferrying plastic into the state."1.20 lakh tonnes of plastic has been seized so far. As many as 24 companies are into processing of 550 tonnes of plastic per day," he said.

Mumbai-based Atiya Rakyan takes your discarded plastic, processes it into fashionable tees, and gives it back to you thanks to her ingenious initiative that gets upcyling right.All the world’s plastic! It is here, there, and everywhere — from straws to polybags, from tiffin boxes to soda bottles. But its negative effects on the environment cannot be discounted, and the world seems to be waking up to this reality.Take, for instance, Atiya Rakyan’s endeavour. Being a committed proponent of sustainable living, she decided to follow an eco-friendly lifestyle. However, it was in 2017 that she came up with an innovative recycling initiative.    "I was in Nashik when I noticed large quantities of plastic bottles being treated as ‘garbage’. I spent the next two years in R&D to create fashionable apparel made of discarded, empty plastic juice bottles. The learning amassed in this automotive plastic parts process led to the launch of RawCycle, making them the best available alternatives to recycled waste," Atiya shares.According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report in 2017, it was estimated that around 25,940 tonnes of plastic waste is generated every day in India. This means a per capita plastic consumption of nearly 11 kilograms — a large part of this includes bottles, wrappers, bags, and sachets. However, plastic bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are completely recyclable, although they are not biodegradable.Atiya has already gathered 1.2 million bottles for recycling and she has recently launched her first apparel collection that is made up of 95 per cent recycled plastic polyester and 5 per cent Dri Fit spandex. She adds, "‘All good. No bad’ is the philosophy for a better planet. With this initiative, seven empty bottles get transformed into one t-shirt. These t-shirts are available in different styles."The gathered plastic bottles are first washed and then chopped into flakes, which are later melted, shaped into chips, and extruded into yarn. Yarn is then woven into fabric, dyed using eco-friendly processes, before the ocean-friendly t-shirt is finally ready.Talking about the feedback she has received for this initiative, the 35-year-old expresses, "People are enjoying the fabric and the tee’s versatility. Our customers are wearing these t-shirts on a daily basis.""Fashion has always been close to my heart and making recycling and upcycling cool was a challenge I was looking forward to. The youth of today connects with sustainability and there is scope to make a unique identity for an initiative like ours because people are seeking and appreciating solutions that show responsibility towards the environment," she adds."Garbage disposal is a huge problem in today’s plastic crisis and we find people often aren’t aware of alternative solutions to manage disposal better. We started with our 1,500 t-shirt capsule collection and apart from general consumers, many of our existing partner organisations showed keen interest to join hands with us. Google, Facebook, L&T, and even some schools have shown their interest in the project," she said on a concluding note.