A month since a scheme for buying back used liquor bottles was launched at TASMAC shops across the Nilgiris, it has scored some success. But some teething issues have also emerged.
The Tamil Nadu government directed Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation Limited (TASMAC) to implement the scheme aimed at eliminating the dumping of used liquor bottles in forest areas and negating the threats they posed to the wildlife. At the time of purchase, people returning used bottles were to be refunded ₹10 a bottle collected in deposit at TASMAC shops across the district.
According to officials, around 50,000-80,000 bottles are being returned each day. P.J. Vasanthan, trustee of Clean Coonoor, an NGO working to manage waste, says the workload at the waste management facility in the town has come down significantly since the scheme got off the ground. “We used to receive 300-400 kg of bottles in recyclable waste each day. That amount has decreased to around 50 kg over the last month,” he said.
A similar reduction in open dumping has also been reported across the district. However, the district administration and the TASMAC face another problem — what to do with the bottles that have piled up at TASMAC shops across the Nilgiris.
Collector S.P. Amrith said the problem is the most acute in remote liquor shops, such as those at Manjoor, where around 50,000 bottles have piled up with no means of disposal. “We are to hold meetings to frame policies for recycling or reusing the bottles,” he said.
For recyclers, collecting and transporting the bottles to locations where they can be recycled or reused is financially unfeasible, officials said. “The TASMAC should not expect to make profits from waste aggregators and recyclers. It is unfeasible for recyclers to pay the TASMAC ₹2 a kg of used bottles, the sum reportedly being demanded,” said an activist from the Nilgiris.
Liquor shop patrons say TASMAC outlets do not refund the amounts collected for the bottles. “The government has said liquor bottles can be returned to any TASMAC outlet. However, at many places, bottles purchased at one outlet are not being accepted at another, while some shops are refunding only ₹5 a bottle. Many tipplers are finding it unnecessarily inconvenient to return the bottles. If the trend continues, they may start disposing of the bottles in the open again,” said R. Joseph, an Udhagamandalam resident, outside a TASMAC outlet near the Collectorate.
The district administration has taken cognizance of complaints that two private bars at Masinagudi are selling liquor bottles purchased from retail outlets to customers passing through the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. The bottles purchased from these bars could be discarded in ecologically sensitive areas within the tiger reserve, activists argue. Mr. Amrith said he was aware of these complaints and asked the District Superintendent of Police, and the Department of Excise to act against these bars.
