'Plastic Flowers Not Banned Due To Low Littering Potential': Union Government Says To Bombay High Court

The Union government has informed the Bombay High Court that plastic flowers are not included in the list of banned single-use plastic items as they do not meet the criteria of “high littering potential and low utility”. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), in an affidavit, stated that the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) had forwarded the matter for consideration but without any supporting analysis.

The affidavit was filed in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) by the Growers Flowers Council of India (GFCI), which sought a ban on plastic flowers in Maharashtra. The PIL argued that plastic flowers, particularly those less than 100 microns thick, contribute to environmental pollution and should be included in the list of prohibited singleuse plastic items.

The High Court had earlier issued notices to the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), CPCB, and MoEFCC, seeking their response on the demand for a ban. In October 2024, the court had asked the Centre whether it had considered CPCB's recommendations for banning plastic flowers.

The MoEFCC, in its affidavit, clarified that an expert committee constituted by the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals (DCPC) had identified 40 single-use plastic items for detailed analysis. However, plastic flowers were not among them.

Refuting the petitioner’s claims, the affidavit stated that the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, do not specify a minimum thickness requirement of 100 microns for plastic flowers.

The government argued, “The petitioner states that... violation of this thickness requirement has resulted in difficulties in decomposing. This is wrong and misleading. There is no such provision in Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016,” the MoEFCC affidavit emphasises.

The plea also highlighted that the Maharashtra government had issued a notification on March 8, 2022, banning several single-use plastic items.