In announcing the ban, the government rejected the demands of food, beverage and consumer goods companies to maintain the restriction to avoid disruptions.
But India, which uses about 14 million tonnes of plastic a year, does not have an organized system to manage plastic waste, which leads to widespread waste.
City streets are full of used plastics that end up drowning drains, rivers and oceans and also killing animals.
India’s ban on disposable plastic items includes straws, cutlery, headphones, packaging films, plastic balloon sticks, candy and ice cream and packs of cigarettes, among other products, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in a statement.
PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Parle Agro of India, Dabur and Amul pressed for straws to be exempt from the ban.
In a relief for consumers, the government has so far exempted plastic bags, but has called on manufacturers and importers to increase the thickness to promote reuse.
Aside from food and beverage and consumer goods companies, plastics manufacturers have also complained about the ban they say did not give them enough time to prepare for the restriction.
Some experts believe enforcing the ban could be difficult. The government has decided to set up control rooms to check for any illegal use, sale and distribution of disposable plastic products.
According to the United Nations, plastic waste is in epidemic proportions in the world’s oceans, with about 100 million tons dumped there. Scientists have found large amounts of microplastics in the intestines of deep oceanic mammals such as whales.