Do not ban use of plastic bags

I am all with Union Minister Jairam Ramesh when he tells parliament "not to Ban Plastic Bags"
Just because the agencies concerned - local bodies like the MCD - have failed to put together their act for suitably dealing with and disposing off plastic bags and other plastics related garbage... it doesn't mean the government has to rush headlong into banning the million odd uses of plastics.
It is like throwing the baby out with the bathwater - the need of the hour is to find the correct ways and means to prevent environmental degradation due to incorrect and improper disposal of the plastic materials from which the highly useful bags are made, and not to blindly ban all plastic bags itself.
So I am happy that Environment minister Jairam Ramesh told Lok Sabha that PLASTIC BAGS should not be banned. Months earlier the Delhi government had banned plastic bags in the city
Almost all Himalayan states have also banned use of plastic bags. In states like Himachal Pradesh and Uttrakhand heavy fine is imposed on citizens using plastic bags and people are advised to use paper or jute bags.
I wonder if anyone in authority is aware how difficult it is for the public to get suitable or convenient jute bags, or for that matter to use paper bags instead, that are viable!
I am glad the environment minister told parliament that banning plastic bags results in more cutting of trees as people are forced to switch to paper bags, a by-product of wood. How is it that everyone has forgotten that plastic bags were introduced about 25 years ago to save Indian forests by reducing consumption of paper.
While replying to a question on efficacy of plastic bags, Jairam Ramesh told his fellow MPs that banning plastic bags is a extreme step. “Most states have banned plastic bags because municipal bodies had failed to deal with them,” the minister said. He further said plastic bags with certain minimum thickness are not bad for environment, a view echoed by the plastic bag industry.
“Only recycled or coloured plastic bags are bad for environment and human health,” he said. The minister also said bio-degradable plastic bags are available in the market and its cost is very high.
I am not sure that is the answer though!