Heavy fines urged for littering public places

Islamabad:The environmentalists have urged the civic agency that the fines for throwing litter in public places should be increased considerably otherwise no campaign can help stop this illegal and unethical act in the capital city.

According to the details, The Environmental Protection (Amendment) Bill 2020 states ‘No person shall throw down, drop or otherwise deposit or leave any litter whatsoever in such circumstances as to cause, or contribute to, or tend to lead to, the defacement by litter in any place whether on land or in water.’

"Whoever contravenes or fails to comply with the provisions of section 16(A) without reasonable cause shall be punishable with fine which may extend to two thousand rupees, and in case of continuing contraventions, or failure with an additional fine which extend to five thousand rupees for every day during which such contravention continues," it further said.

The environmentalists maintained that the local administration put into force in 2011 the anti-littering rules with a warning that anyone caught throwing waste in the open would be fined Rs50. The campaigns that started after introduction of this law never yielded desired results as fine was too low for majority of the violators and there was also no proper mechanism to implement it transparently.

Some people throw litter in the open that has hazardous impacts not only on natural environment but also on animals and people. Plastic waste suffocates, disables and kills thousands of animals each year. It also causes accidents and injuries, smoother plants, start fires and harm or kill animals. It also attracts rats and harmful bacteria. It costs the local administration millions of rupees to reverse the negative effects of litter.

An official has said "An anti-litter task force was established in the past to impose on-the-spot cash fines ranging from Rs50 to Rs300 on residents caught littering. But with the passage of time it stopped conducting raids and monitoring the public places due to some reasons." He said, "We are going to launch anti-litter campaign in the coming days and will impose heavy fines on those who will be found throwing waste in open places."