Govt invites startups to find alternatives to single-use plastics

The government has launched a challenge for startups to present alternative solutions to single-use plastics which it seeks to phase out by 2022. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade will award the first and second place holders ₹3 lakh and ₹2 lakh respectively. Earlier, the Centre reportedly asked e-commerce firms to stop using plastics in product packagings.