Bengaluru Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun was fined Rs 500 by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, after a video of her gifting Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa a dry fruits basket covered with plastic wrap went viral.
Ironically, the Bengaluru mayor has been actively campaigning against the use of plastic.
Mallikarjun accepted her mistake and after she was heavily criticised by environmentalists for her hypocrisy.
Karnataka: Bengaluru Mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun paid Rs 500 fine for presenting a gift wrapped in plastic to Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa. Plastic was banned by Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) in 2016. pic.twitter.com/4To7o9BAGQ
— ANI (@ANI) August 4, 2019
Stating that she needs to set an example for the residents of Bengaluru, the mayor told Deccan Herald, "I don't know who bought the dry fruits basket wrapped in plastic. Nevertheless, I admit to my mistake and am willing to be punished. Being the mayor of the city, I should set an example to the others. On Saturday, I'll pay a fine of Rs 500 to the special commissioner (Solid Waste Management)."
She added that through the KMC Act, the city is enabling fines for use of plastic.
In 2018, BBMP banned the use of plastic and began imposing a fine of Rs 1,000 on those seen carrying plastic bags. The civic body has collected Rs 32.96 lakh as fine till now, DH reported. In addition to this, over 9,000 shops and 4,000 street vendors have been raided by the BBMP and 13.3 tonnes of plastic has been recovered.
