Water, water, everywhere, but not a drop to drink — if it’s bottled

In another push to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project — Swachh Bharat Mission — the Centre wants to reduce plastic waste by curtailing the use of bottled water at official meetings.

The move aims to avoid the use of harmful plastics and promote safe drinking water. Does this mean the ubiquitous water bottles will soon disappear from high-profile meetings and workshops?

Yes, if one goes by an April 28 Circular issued by the Union Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation. It states that the Ministry has stopped using bottled water at functions, and requests all Central ministries and establishments to follow suit.

It noted that some States too have stopped using bottled water at meetings.

The Sikkim government recently banned bottled water along with the use of plastics. Jammu & Kashmir also prohibits non-biodegradable plastics, while the Bihar government had taken similar measures in 2015.

In addition to meetings, the Water Ministry wants events conducted by subordinate and attached offices/public sector units to avoid bottled water and make alternative arrangements.

Governmental efforts to replace plastics are not new. As Railway Minister, Lalu Prasad tried to introduce earthen pots – matka cups – to serve tea in trains and in his Ministry. And in the pilgrim town of Tirumala, all forms of plastics have been banned for over a year now.

In 1997, while addressing a conference on the environment at Vigyan Bhavan, at which bottled water was being served, then Prime Minister IK Gujaral said, “We have to get rid of plastics, which cause a lot of harm. We should provide clean drinking water at an affordable price to our citizens, and not costly bottled water.”

However, the bottled water industry has been growing rapidly over the years, with hundreds of small and big players doing brisk business in several States.. This summer, seeing an opportunity in the water crisis, some of the firms have jacked up their prices

According to Euromonitor International, the size of the still bottled water segment in India stood at ₹121.3 billion in value terms and about 5.6 billion litres in volume terms in 2015.

Interestingly, drinking water bottles of 200 ml or 500 ml capacity, tailored for marriages, meetings and other functions, have become quite common in cities.

(Inputs from Meenakshi Verma Ambwani)

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