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Climate change is big problem for India, so now the government there has taken action with new plans to cut plastic waste by introducing a ban on single-use plastic.

This includes items like straws, disposable cutlery and food packing to try and help the country's problem with pollution. However, the rule currently excludes plastic bags.

Food and drinks companies and others who produce these kinds of single-use plastic items had been calling for more time before the ban was brought in.

But the government ignored this request, saying it was necessary to take action quickly.

What is India's big problem with plastic?

India is a country with the second biggest population in the world, and its growing economy has led to more and more demand for goods that come in with single-use plastic products.

India uses about 14 million tons of plastic each year and unlike other countries doesn't have systems for managing plastic waste, like recycling.

This has led to widespread littering and streets covered in waste, which is a big problem as it can block drains, rivers and oceans and also kill animals.

The country's prime minister Narendra Modi said in a statement that the ban on single-use plastic items would include straws, cutlery, ear buds, packaging films, plastic sticks for balloons, sweet papers, and ice-cream packets, among other products.

For now, plastic bags have not been included but the government has asked manufacturers and importers to raise the thickness to try and encourage people to use plastic bags more than once.

What have people been saying about the ban?

Companies including PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, India's Parle Agro, Dabur and Amul had all tried to get straws removed from the ban.

Other than food and drinks and consumer goods companies, plastic manufacturers have also complained about the ban as they say they weren't given enough time to prepare for the restriction.

Some experts have also raised concerns that enforcing the ban might be difficult. The government has decided to set up control rooms to check any illegal use, sale and distribution of single-use plastic products.

According to the United Nations, an estimated 100 million tons of plastic waste is currently clogging up with world's oceans after being dumped there.

Scientists have also reported having found large amounts of micro plastic in the intestines of deep-dwelling ocean mammals like whales.