Ministry to issue directive to local admin

The Ministry of Textiles and Jute is set to issue a directive to all levels of local administration to take necessary steps for implementing the Mandatory Jute Packaging Act 2010.
A recent meeting of the advisory committee on jute ministry, chaired by Jute Minister Emaj Uddin Pramanik, has taken the decision.
The meeting also decided to launch a publicity campaign through both electronic and print media for creating awareness among people about use of the environment-friendly green products.
The meeting assigned Department of Jute, Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC), and Bangladesh Jute Mills Association (BJMA) in this regard.
Earlier, the ministry published a gazette on implementation of the jute packaging act. Although the act execution date was from January 1, 2014, it is yet to get full momentum.
According to the report of a sub-committee on implementation of the act, initially local consumption of jute sacks by both public and private sectors for packaging products will stand at around 250 million a year.
Jute bags will have to be used to pack paddy, rice, wheat, maize, sugar and fertiliser, according to the packaging law.
The total demand of jute bags in these sectors is around 450 million a year.
The parliament passed the act in October 2010 to help promote use of jute bags in the country.
About 7.0 million bales of jute are produced in Bangladesh every year. Of the total production, some 4.5-5.0 million bales are usually required for local jute industries and the rest are kept for export.