Most places in Rajasthan have failed to ensure an effective ban on polythene bags which are polluting the environment besides choking drains and water bodies.

Informing about the initiative, regional officer of RPSCB, Kota, Amit Kumar Sharma said they have jointly developed cloth bag vending machines with an Udaipur-based private company. “The cost of each cloth bag vending machines ₹1.25 lakh. So far, the RPSCB have procured 3 such machines,” he said.

He said these machines dispenses eco-friendly carry bags made of textile waste which were procured from textile units in Pali district.

“The machine can dispense 76 bags with two separate hoppers which can accommodate various sizes of bags and each of the cloth bag has carrying capacity of around 4 to 5 kg,” Sharma said.

A total of 9,000 cloth bags have been manufactured by the RSPCB, he said. There is a coin acceptor in the machine through which customer can insert ₹5 or ₹10 coin and get 2 cloth bags for ₹5, he said.

The machine also has support for multiple bag dispensing at a time based on denomination of the coin inserted, he said. The machine can be easily grouted on the floor in market places, he said.

The machine will also have LED moving message display for slogans/advertisements while there is also provision for playing sound with USB, Sharma said.

“Usually people do not bring any bag from their home while going for shopping. Hence, they ask for polybags from shopkeepers but now such machines would dispense cloth bags to help ensure effective ban on plastic bags and also keep environment clean,” the RSPCB official said.

Sharma said some private firms and industrial units have offered to put their advertisements on the cloth bag which would further bring down the cost of such bags.

Asked, RSPCB member secretary KCA Arun Prasad the decision about cities in which such machines will be installed has not been taken yet. “These cloth bag vending machines will be installed under a pilot project at some place,” he said.