India has become the first Asian country to launch the Plastics Pact. The India Plastics Pact, launched today, is a collaborative initiative that aims to bring together businesses, governments and nonprofits to set time-bound commitments to reduce plastics from their value chains.

India generates 9.46 metric tonnes of plastic waste annually, of which 40 per cent is not collected. About half of all plastics produced in the country are used in packaging, most of it is single-use in nature. This plastic waste ends up clogging drains and polluting the oceans and killing marine life. It also enters the food chain and human bodies, causing a series of health problems.

The Plastics Pact aims to keep plastic packaging in the economy and out of the natural environment. It aims to achieve following targets by 2030:

• Define a list of unnecessary or problematic plastic packaging and items and take measures to address them through redesign and innovation.
• 100 per cent of plastic packaging to be reusable or recyclable.
• 50 per cent of plastic packaging to be effectively recycled.
• 25 per cent average recycled content across all plastic packaging.

The India Plastics Pact is a joint initiative between World Wide Fund for Nature-India (WWF India) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). “The India Plastics Pact provides a strong platform for Indian businesses to drive actionable, sustainable solutions and accelerate the transition toward a circular economy,” Arvind Wable, President, WWF India, was quoted in an official statement.

The Pact is expected to bring together leading businesses at a national level to make commitments for building a circular system for plastics. The Pact envisions a world where plastic is valued and does not pollute the environment.

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It is claimed that the Pact will stimulate innovative new business models to reduce the total amount of plastic packaging. It will also help build a stronger recycling system, ensuring that plastic packaging can be effectively recycled and made into new products, and back to packaging with the support of all stakeholders.

Seventeen businesses including major fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) brands, manufacturers, retailers, and recyclers have committed to the Pact as founding members, and nine have joined as supporting organisations.

The Pact is supported by UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) and WRAP, a global nonprofit based in the United Kingdom. WRAP provides operational and technical support to Plastics Pacts in Europe, the Americas, Australia and Africa and fully supports the Pact in India.

The pact was launched by HE Mr Alexander Ellis, British High Commissioner to India, during the CII’s 16th Sustainability Summit. “Protecting the climate and environment is a key pillar of the 2030 Roadmap agreed by PMs Johnson and Modi (Prime Minister India Narendra Modi), which sets out the UK and India’s shared ambition over the next decade,” Ellis was quoted as saying.

“The UK is proud to be India’s biggest European research partner, with £400 million (approx. Rs 40,435 million) of joint investment in research and innovation since 2008. Through joint efforts by CII, WWF India, the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), UK Research and Innovation, and members of the India Plastics Pact, this first of its kind initiative in Asia will complement India’s other bold initiatives in the renewables sector and efforts to limit single-use plastics,” he added.

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