World Environment Day 2025, observed on June 5, 2025, focuses on “Beat Plastic Pollution,” hosted by the Republic of Korea, emphasizing global action against plastic waste. So let’s focus on the biggest plastic polluter in the world, India, which is creating around 9.3 million tonnes of plastic waste every year—that’s nearly 20% of the global total. But what are the reasons? Fast-growing cities, rising consumption, and poor waste management systems.
More than 60% of this waste is managed by informal workers, which often means it’s not recycled properly. As a result, plastic ends up clogging rivers, drains, and sewers, especially in big cities like Mumbai and Delhi, making floods worse during rains.
Moreover, around 80% of the litter found along India’s coastlines is plastic, seriously affecting marine life and damaging ocean ecosystems. Besides, you must have heard that “if we store our food in a plastic bag or one-time use plastic, we will get sick!” But what will happen if we eat, drink and breathe plastic? But somehow, this is what we are doing. Because plastic pollution is not just limited to land, water or .
India’s Plastic Pollution: A Snapshot for World Environment Day 2025
- India produces about 9.3 million tonnes of plastic waste every year. This makes India the largest plastic polluter in the world, contributing to 20% of all global plastic pollution.
- When it comes to waste collection, only 81% of plastic waste gets collected. That means 19% is left uncollected, often dumped openly or burned, which harms the environment and human health.
- On average, each Indian uses about 11 kilograms of plastic per year. This amount is growing because of more people moving to cities and more resources, and shopping habits.
Urban Centres: What’s the Frontline Crisis This World Environment Day 2025?
1. Delhi
- Plastic Waste Generation: Delhi produces about 1,113 tonnes of plastic waste every day. But it can only process 871 tonnes, leaving 242 tonnes unprocessed.
- Landfill Overflow: The main landfills at Ghazipur, Bhalswa, and Okhla get over 10,000 tonnes of waste daily. This creates huge “trash mountains” and releases large amounts of methane gas.
- Health Impacts: The waste buildup causes serious health problems, like breathing issues and shorter life expectancy.
2. Mumbai
- Waste Generation: Mumbai produces around 6,300 tonnes of waste every day, with a big share being plastic.
- Recycling Efforts: The city uses the hub-and-spoke model for managing waste. But the huge amount of waste and dependence on informal workers make it hard to manage well.
3. Bengaluru
- Daily Waste Production: Bengaluru generates about 6,000 tonnes of waste each day, but only 60% of the plastic waste gets recycled.
- Recycling Infrastructure: Karnataka has 143 recycling units that can recycle about 210,000 tonnes of plastic per year — roughly 57% of the total plastic waste generated.
4. Pune
- Waste Generation: Pune creates around 2,000 tonnes of solid waste daily, with plastic making up about 30-32% of it.
- Infrastructure Challenges: The closure of the Kothrud garbage dump has caused major problems for waste collection nearby, leading to delays and health risks.
Health Impacts: Microplastics Are Now Inside Us
The health risks from plastic pollution are no longer just environmental because they’re personal. Since, a 2024 study in Scientific Reports found microplastics in 88.9% of human blood samples, with about 4.2 particles per milliliter. That means plastic is not just around us—it’s inside us.
This supports earlier findings like the 2022 Guardian report, which showed microplastics in human lungs and placentas. Besides, in India, parliamentary discussions in March 2025 confirmed the presence of microplastics in people. While the full health effects aren’t clear yet, scientists believe they could cause oxidative stress, DNA damage, and metabolic issues.
Plastic pollution also harms health indirectly:
- Contaminated water from plastic chemicals can cause waterborne diseases.
- Plastic-filled soil can hurt crop health, affecting the food we eat.
As plastic is now found on land, in oceans, in the air, in food, in drinking water—and even in our blood, this is no longer just an environmental problem. It’s a human one.
India’s Fight Against Plastic Pollution: What’s Being Done—and What’s Not Working
India has started many programs to control plastic pollution. But progress is still uneven.
- The Plastic Waste Management Rules were first introduced in 2016. They were updated in 2022 and 2024. These rules say companies must collect, sort, and recycle the plastic they produce. This includes big brands and manufacturers.
- In 2021, India banned single-use plastics like plastic bags, straws, and cutlery. But many reports say the ban is poorly enforced in many areas.
- Under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program, companies like Coca-Cola and Mondelez have promised to use 100% recyclable packaging by 2025. These promises follow rules from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
- There are also awareness campaigns, like the Swachh Bharat Mission and a mascot called ‘Prakriti’ introduced in 2022. Schools, NGOs, and communities organize clean-up drives and promote alternatives like paper and cloth bags.
- The government set up a National Dashboard to track plastic waste data and progress on reducing single-use plastics.
But despite these efforts, serious challenges remain:
- Many local authorities don’t have the tools or infrastructure to enforce rules properly.
- The informal waste sector, which handles more than half of India’s plastic, still lacks official recognition, making the system inefficient and unfair.
- A recent article on NetZeroIndia.org (May 24, 2025) highlighted campaigns like “One Nation, One Mission: End Plastic Pollution”, but also stressed that implementation is weak and action on the ground is slow.
Table: Key Government Initiatives and Challenges
| Initiative | Description | Challenges |
| Plastic Waste Management Rules | Mandates collection, segregation, recycling | Inconsistent enforcement, infrastructure |
| Ban on Single-Use Plastics (2021) | Bans bags, straws, cutlery | Varying compliance, public awareness |
| Extended Producer Responsibility | Producers manage packaging lifecycle | Corporate compliance, monitoring |
| Swachh Bharat Mission | Promotes clean India, reduces plastic use | Limited reach, funding constraints |
| National Dashboard on Single Use Plastic | Tracks progress in waste reduction | Data accuracy, local reporting |
In the End: We’re Not Just Living with Plastic — We’re Living in It
Plastic pollution is no longer a distant environmental issue — it’s a daily, deadly part of our lives. From overflowing landfills in Delhi and Mumbai, to plastic-filled drains in Pune and incomplete recycling in Bengaluru, India’s cities are drowning in waste. And the plastic isn’t just outside — it’s inside us. Studies have found microplastics in our blood, lungs, and even placentas.
As the theme of World Environment Day 2025 reminds us — “Beat Plastic Pollution” — the time to act is now. Not just with rules and campaigns, but with real accountability, local support, and urgent cleanup. Because when plastic is in our air, food, water, and now our bodies, it’s not just pollution anymore.
It’s a crisis we must solve together.
