UPDATE
July 19, 2025
Environmentalists and concerned citizens met with Ms. Reena Gupta, Chairperson of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), to present a set of crucial suggestions aimed at tackling Amritsar’s growing single-use plastic crisis.
Campaign partners:
Samita Kaur (Vatrukh Foundation), Navneet Bhullar (MD Co-founder, AGAPP, Jalandhar), Mona Indu Aurora (Voice of Amritsar), Shweta Mehra (Earthy Instincts), Ritu Malhan (Green Thumb), Ripanjot Kaur Soni Bagga (Punjabi Writer), Aman Kaur (Water Warriors, Punjab), Swaranjit Kaur (Environmentalist), Pallavi Luthra Kapoor, Manpreet Khaira (Environmentalist), Dr. Simarpreet Sandhu (OTT Transformation Trust), Mona Singh- FICCI FLO Amritsar
Addressed to:
S. Bhaghwant Singh Mann, Chief Minister of Punjab
Ms. Reena Gupta, Chairperson Punjab Pollution Control Board
Deputy Commissioner, Amritsar
Amritsar Municipal Corporation
Demands:
Ensure compliance with the single-use plastic ban in Amritsar
Distribution and manufacture of plastic carry bags must be prohibited
Alternatives like paper bags and utensils made of leaves etc must be encouraged
Use of steel jugs and glasses in langars and gatherings must be encouraged
The administration must ensure the installation of easily-accessible plastic collection centres in large numbers
Bhagtanwala Landfill should be decommissioned and no more garbage should be deposited
450 bagichas (tree clusters with native species) should be created all over Amritsar district including in every RWA, schools, colleges, hospitals etc to mark the 450th anniversary of the founding of the city
Amritsar is struggling under the weight of its own waste. A city that receives 30 million pilgrims each year, with weekend footfalls touching 2 lakh people, is crumbling quite literally, with waste dumps and litter all around.
While Punjab officially banned several single-use plastic items as early as 2016 and again through the 2022 national directive, implementation has remained dangerously lax, with the municipal corporation unable to uphold the ban.
Shopkeepers continue to sell goods in polythene bags, and fruits and vegetables are routinely wrapped in them; straws, cutlery, packaging films, and balloon sticks are available everywhere with no fear of penalties. Even roadside langars still distribute food in plasticware.
The 25-acre Bhagtanwala landfill which is located in close proximity to the Golden Temple, and has accumulated over 10 lakh metric tonnes of waste, frequently catches fire, releasing thick toxic smoke, largely from burning plastic. This is detrimental to the health of lakhs of residents and visitors, enhancing risks of respiratory illnesses, and even cancer. The waste eventually enters water bodies, contaminating canals and rivers.
Across the state of Punjab, plastic waste generation has doubled in just five years – from 54,000 tonnes in 2017 to nearly 129,000 tonnes by 2022. Plastic is non-biodegradable and can take hundreds of years to break down. As it degrades, it breaks into smaller fragments called microplastics and nanoplastics, which contaminate soil, water, and eventually enter our food chain. Numerous scientific studies have shown that microplastics enter human bloodstreams, lungs and even the brain. They mimic hormones and disrupt the body’s endocrine system thereby enhancing the risk of cardiovascular diseases, strokes, infertility among other things.
As the city prepares to celebrate the 450th anniversary of its founding by Guru Ram Das Ji, we are urging authorities to eliminate all forms of single-use plastic from the city.
We are calling for a complete and immediate ban on the manufacture, sale, and use of plastic carry bags, disposable plates and cutlery, thermocol cups, and mineral water bottles within Amritsar district. These items should be replaced with sustainable alternatives such as cloth bags, leaf-based tableware, and refillable containers.
Through radio jingles, television ads, street banners, and local language outreach, citizens must be informed of the health and ecological dangers of plastic.
Plastic collection centres must be set up at every ward, market area, and near religious sites to make recycling accessible and effective. Simultaneously, we request the state to enforce the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy – ensuring that plastic-producing companies collect back the waste their products generate.
We urge the government to decommission the Bhagtanwala landfill and initiate a complete stop to all garbage dumping at the site.
To mark the 450th anniversary, 450 Bagichas (tree groves with native species) should be planted across Amritsar district– in school campuses, college grounds, hospital courtyards, housing colonies, and every available public space.
This effort will not only improve air quality and provide much-needed green cover, but also remind every visitor that Amritsar honours its past by investing in a sustainable future.
Sources:
Plastic ban goes up in smoke in Amritsar - The Tribune
MC fails to implement ban on single-use plastic in Amritsar city - The Tribune
Fate of single-use plastic ban can be like that of Chinese string | Amritsar News - Times of India
NGT seeks time-bound plan to clear Amritsar’s Bhagtanwala garbage dump
UPDATE
July 19, 2025
Environmentalists and concerned citizens met with Ms. Reena Gupta, Chairperson of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), to present a set of crucial suggestions aimed at tackling Amritsar’s growing single-use plastic crisis.
Campaign partners:
Samita Kaur (Vatrukh Foundation), Navneet Bhullar (MD Co-founder, AGAPP, Jalandhar), Mona Indu Aurora (Voice of Amritsar), Shweta Mehra (Earthy Instincts), Ritu Malhan (Green Thumb), Ripanjot Kaur Soni Bagga (Punjabi Writer), Aman Kaur (Water Warriors, Punjab), Swaranjit Kaur (Environmentalist), Pallavi Luthra Kapoor, Manpreet Khaira (Environmentalist), Dr. Simarpreet Sandhu (OTT Transformation Trust), Mona Singh- FICCI FLO Amritsar
Addressed to:
S. Bhaghwant Singh Mann, Chief Minister of Punjab
Ms. Reena Gupta, Chairperson Punjab Pollution Control Board
Deputy Commissioner, Amritsar
Amritsar Municipal Corporation
Demands:
Ensure compliance with the single-use plastic ban in Amritsar
Distribution and manufacture of plastic carry bags must be prohibited
Alternatives like paper bags and utensils made of leaves etc must be encouraged
Use of steel jugs and glasses in langars and gatherings must be encouraged
The administration must ensure the installation of easily-accessible plastic collection centres in large numbers
Bhagtanwala Landfill should be decommissioned and no more garbage should be deposited
450 bagichas (tree clusters with native species) should be created all over Amritsar district including in every RWA, schools, colleges, hospitals etc to mark the 450th anniversary of the founding of the city
Amritsar is struggling under the weight of its own waste. A city that receives 30 million pilgrims each year, with weekend footfalls touching 2 lakh people, is crumbling quite literally, with waste dumps and litter all around.
While Punjab officially banned several single-use plastic items as early as 2016 and again through the 2022 national directive, implementation has remained dangerously lax, with the municipal corporation unable to uphold the ban.
Shopkeepers continue to sell goods in polythene bags, and fruits and vegetables are routinely wrapped in them; straws, cutlery, packaging films, and balloon sticks are available everywhere with no fear of penalties. Even roadside langars still distribute food in plasticware.
The 25-acre Bhagtanwala landfill which is located in close proximity to the Golden Temple, and has accumulated over 10 lakh metric tonnes of waste, frequently catches fire, releasing thick toxic smoke, largely from burning plastic. This is detrimental to the health of lakhs of residents and visitors, enhancing risks of respiratory illnesses, and even cancer. The waste eventually enters water bodies, contaminating canals and rivers.
Across the state of Punjab, plastic waste generation has doubled in just five years – from 54,000 tonnes in 2017 to nearly 129,000 tonnes by 2022. Plastic is non-biodegradable and can take hundreds of years to break down. As it degrades, it breaks into smaller fragments called microplastics and nanoplastics, which contaminate soil, water, and eventually enter our food chain. Numerous scientific studies have shown that microplastics enter human bloodstreams, lungs and even the brain. They mimic hormones and disrupt the body’s endocrine system thereby enhancing the risk of cardiovascular diseases, strokes, infertility among other things.
As the city prepares to celebrate the 450th anniversary of its founding by Guru Ram Das Ji, we are urging authorities to eliminate all forms of single-use plastic from the city.
We are calling for a complete and immediate ban on the manufacture, sale, and use of plastic carry bags, disposable plates and cutlery, thermocol cups, and mineral water bottles within Amritsar district. These items should be replaced with sustainable alternatives such as cloth bags, leaf-based tableware, and refillable containers.
Through radio jingles, television ads, street banners, and local language outreach, citizens must be informed of the health and ecological dangers of plastic.
Plastic collection centres must be set up at every ward, market area, and near religious sites to make recycling accessible and effective. Simultaneously, we request the state to enforce the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy – ensuring that plastic-producing companies collect back the waste their products generate.
We urge the government to decommission the Bhagtanwala landfill and initiate a complete stop to all garbage dumping at the site.
To mark the 450th anniversary, 450 Bagichas (tree groves with native species) should be planted across Amritsar district– in school campuses, college grounds, hospital courtyards, housing colonies, and every available public space.
This effort will not only improve air quality and provide much-needed green cover, but also remind every visitor that Amritsar honours its past by investing in a sustainable future.
Sources:
Plastic ban goes up in smoke in Amritsar - The Tribune
MC fails to implement ban on single-use plastic in Amritsar city - The Tribune
Fate of single-use plastic ban can be like that of Chinese string | Amritsar News - Times of India
NGT seeks time-bound plan to clear Amritsar’s Bhagtanwala garbage dump