April 14: Despite a ban on plastic along the Marina, the second largest beach in the world continues to be a dumping ground of two tonnes of garbage — of which plastic comprises a goodly chunk — on a daily basis.

“About 50,000 to one lakh people visit Marina daily and screening each one of them is not feasible. Currently the city corporation is fighting a lone battle and there is a need for more co-operation from the Chennai city police and the Pollution Control Board to ensure a clean and green Marina. The local police personnel lack commitment and fail to remove the carts that sell eatables wrapped in plastic covers,” said a corporation official.

“The plastic-free Marina concept worked for a few months but slowly lost its pace. If evicting the mobile shops from the beach will get the system back on track we are willing to stand by the corporation officials and help them. But we cannot get involved single-handedly and evict the shops,” said a senior police officer.

Mayor M. Subramanian, however, denied that there was any lack of co-ordination between the city police and the corporation. “There is a slight improvement in the public response, the bins are getting filled with plastic waste but there is a need for more awareness, as tho-usands visit Marina from across the country,” he said.