HYDERABAD: No one is more irked by the plastic ban than restaurants selling take-away food. They feel that packing food in cloth bags is a messy business. Despite environmental activists arguing the relaxation of blanket ban on plastic, the 40-micron polythene seems to be bailing out hotel owners. “Of course the plastic ban hits our business hard,” says Shyam Sundar Ahuja, owner of Vaishnavi restaurant in Begumpet. Packing food in paper or cloth bags is not possible as the food might leak and bags get damp by the time one reaches home, says Sundar adding, “If I stop using plastic completely, I have no clue what to replace it with. Unless the government provides us with an alternative, a complete ban is not justified.”Tapan Patro, one of the cooks in Roll Call food joint at Punjagutta, however says, “If plastic is banned, someone will come up with an alternative material to pack food. People want to make use of such marketing opportunities,” adding he is ready to fall in line with the ban. Some other restaurants put the onus on the customer, like Baba's Chulha. Shalini, shop in-charge says they have completely stopped using plastic. “A few have had complaints about it as it is cumbersome to carry bags. However, since there is no choice, the next time they come, they generally get their bags,” she says. A slightly bigger chain like the Subway doesn’t mind the extra cost of cloth and paper bags. “Cloth bags cause loss as they are much expensive than plastic. We do not however mind, as at the end we are doing it for the environment,” says shift in-charge V Naresh. “We do not charge customers for cloth bags. For delivery, we use special packing boxes to ensure the food doesn't leak,” he adds. For those selling on the road, it is more about following the rule and using thick plastic bags.
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