1 week Ago By Mayank Bhusan Pani
SAMBALPUR: The Sambalpur Municipal Corporation (SMC)’s decision to ban paper cups to arrest use of plastic and consequent waste generation is an eco-friendly move but has not gone down well with local traders of the city. Small vendors, especially tea stall owners, struggling to adopt to the new regulation say the lack of affordable and viable alternatives has made the transition difficult. SMC commissioner Vedabhushan said, paper cups contain a thin plastic coating making them unsuitable for hot beverages.
Moreover, its disposal is another concern. “The directive mandates vendors to shift to reusable cups made of glass and steel or shift to eco-friendly alternatives like clay cups,” he said. However, the ground reality paints a different picture as many small tea stall owners claim clay cups are not readily available in the market and come at a higher cost.
On the other hand, reusable cups, while sustainable, require continuous washing, increasing their workload and operational expenses. A tea vendor near Fatak area in Sambalpur, Sunil, said, “I had to hire a person just to wash the cups. That’s an additional salary I have to pay.
I am using glass cups now, but I had to increase price of my tea from `7 to `10.” Another tea vendor near Budharaja, Lalit Meher, said, “Clay cups are also expensive and break easily. We don’t know how to manage this shift without proper support or sensitisation.
” The SMC commissioner assured that no strict enforcement will be carried out until vendors are completely aware of the change. “As part of our awareness efforts, our teams are personally visiting vendors to sensitise them and assess their remaining paper cup stock. Vendors selling disposable wares have been instructed to stop selling paper cups and return or dispose of their stocks as soon as possible,” he said.
Vedabhushan said while enforcement will begin a few weeks, tea stall and street vendors will be given sufficient time to implement the necessary changes..
