Chennai, Nov 9 : In a renewed effort to uphold the Nilgiris district's plastic ban, the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC), Ooty region, has issued strict instructions to ensure that passengers do not carry banned plastic drinking water and soft drink bottles while travelling to the hill district.

Following complaints that prohibited plastic bottles were still being transported on government buses, TNSTC has directed all drivers and conductors to alert passengers before departure from the Mettupalayam bus stand in Coimbatore -- the key gateway to the Nilgiris.

In a circular, M. Jaishankar, General Manager of TNSTC (Ooty region), instructed conductors from all six branches under the region to ensure passengers bound for the Nilgiris do not possess banned plastic items.

'Conductors and drivers should make sure that passengers entering the Nilgiris via Mettupalayam do not carry plastic bottles. Officers in charge of the Mettupalayam bus stand must monitor buses bound for the hills to ensure compliance,' the circular stated.

The circular further warned that disciplinary action would be taken against any TNSTC personnel failing to adhere to the directive.

The move comes as part of coordinated efforts to support the district administration's anti-plastic enforcement drive, aimed at preserving the Nilgiris' fragile ecosystem and reducing litter along key tourist routes.

Jaishankar said that, apart from the written directive, verbal instructions have also been mandated. 'Drivers and conductors must remind passengers before departure that carrying banned plastic bottles or other items into the Nilgiris is prohibited. This announcement should be made before the buses leave the Mettupalayam stand,' he explained.

He added that the directive was not limited to the Ooty region alone. 'Drivers and conductors of buses operated from other TNSTC branches to destinations in the Nilgiris have also been instructed to ensure passengers comply with the ban,' Jaishankar said.

Authorities hope the move will strengthen enforcement at the source and prevent the inflow of plastic waste into one of Tamil Nadu's most ecologically sensitive hill regions, where the district administration has been strictly implementing the ban for several years.

/IANS