Badrul Ahsan :
Widespread use of polythene and polypropylene bags goes on unabated across the country, although jute packages are mandatory.
The government in 2010 enacted the Mandatory Jute Packaging Act to boost the use of environment-friendly jute bags for packaging of essential commodities.
Initially, use of jute bags for packaging of six commodities – paddy, rice, wheat, maize, fertiliser and sugar – was made mandatory.
On January 21 in 2011, the government widened the use of jute bags for packaging for 11 other commodities such as chilly, turmeric, onion, ginger, potato and flour.
But a visit to different kitchen markets in the city, this correspondent found a very few commodities packed with jute-made bags. Only some commodities marketed by state-owned organizations were packed with jute-made bags.
Talking to The New Nation, some mill owners alleged that such mandatory use of jute bags pushes up their production costs.
The lapses in enforcing the law also made the traders discouraged to use jute bags, some pointed out.
“We will use jute bags if the government makes all concerned to do the same. If some of us use jute bag and the other do not, then our production costs would be higher and thus we will be less competitive in the market,” Managing Director of a leading group of industries told The New Nation, preferring anonymity.
“Making use of jute bags mandatory will not be able to save the jute sector. The government should rather try to find ways to make raw jute and jute goods attractive to the international users,” Mostafa Kamal, owner of the City Group of Industries said.
“Oxygen can be used for a temporary solution. It cannot be a long term solution. We should have a permanent solution for the survival of the jute sector,” he added.
However, State Minister for Textiles and Jute Mirza Azam said that the government is going to launch special drives for the enforcement of the relevant law.
“We will start such drives from May 15 countrywide,” he said.
“We know that many businessmen are now using other items to pack their goods defying the government rules. If we find such violation during our drives, we will bring the factory owners under the law,” he added.
Azam also said that they had already given directives to the law enforcing agencies to take necessary steps for implementing the Mandatory Jute Packaging Act-2010.
All the divisional commissioners and deputy commissioners have been directed to conduct such special drive, Azam added.
The Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation was supposed to implement the Mandatory Jute Packaging Act-2010 from January 1, 2014 but it failed to enforce the law.
