PTI
 
New Delhi, May 21: Delhi government has informed the High Court that it would not be possible to ensure mandatory use of only bio-degradable plastic carrybags in the capital as it was economically unviable.

However, the government has assured it was considering the possibility of making it mandatory in certain sectors which use huge quantum of ubiquitious plastic bags every day.

In an affidavit, R T L D'Souza, Deputy Secretary, Department of Environment, stated that the government in order to check the indiscriminate use of the plastic bags has decided to extend the provisions of the Delhi Plastic Bag and Non-Biodegradable Garbage Act 2000 to all restaurants and eating jaunts with more than 50 seats; fruit and vegetable outlets of Mother Dairy, shopping malls and liquor vends.

Presently, the ban on the use of non bio-degradable plastic bags is being implemented by the government at five-star hotels and hospitals with 100-bed facilities.

According to the government, non bio-degradable bags are comparatively cheaper than bio-degradable bags and as such any ban on the former would jack up the prices of carrybags here.

The government's response comes in the wake of a direction by the Delhi High Court seeking a reply as to why no serious effort had been made by it to ban non bio-degradable plastic bags despite the Act coming into force from 2000.

Vinod Kumar Jain of Tapas, an NGO, had earlier filed a PIL complaining that the government had failed to implement the Act thereby causing serious environmental pollution in the national capital.