The Sikkim government has been recommended by the state’s pollution control board to ban the use of plastic bags in the state.

The Sikkim pollution control board (SPCB) has asked the state government to ban plastic bags that have thickness less than 75 micron.

The SPCB has recommended the Sikkim government to ban plastic bags that have thickness less than 75 micron by the end of 2022.

The Sikkim government has also been urged to phase out plastic bags that have thickness less than 120 micron in the next phase.

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The recommendations by the Sikkim pollution control board comes as part of efforts to make the state plastic-free.

The SPCB made the recommendations following a meeting with representatives of the seven civic bodies in Sikkim.

The meeting discussed measures to phase out single-use plastic items and developing enforcement strategies for effective implementation of the Plastic Waste Management Rules (PWM) 2016 and subsequent legislation.

The Sikkim pollution control board further recommended the state government to set up a task force to check plastic use in the state.