India is not only one of the world’s most populous nations, it is also at the epicentre of a rapidly escalating plastic crisis. As per research conducted by the University of Leeds, India generates approximately 10.2 million tonnes of plastic waste each year, more than double that of the next highest-polluting countries. It has implications on our shared environment. At this juncture, it is pertinent to pause and reflect on the drastic transitions of Indian civilisation in the last few decades. From being a nature centred people, who co-existed sustainably with an eco-friendly lifestyle, we have turned into a consumerist society that generates tonnes of waste everyday.India’s cultural memory is rich with sustainable practices: cloth bags in every household, metal tiffin boxes passed through generations, glass bottles that were returned and reused, and earthenware commonly used in daily life. Waste, in the modern sense, barely existed because nothing was designed to be thrown away.Our transition is best reflected through the widespread use of plastic. Multi-layer plastics and single use plastics, once hailed as innovations, gradually displaced traditional, eco-friendly alternatives. Convenience became paramount, and business models optimised around speed, scale, and disposability. What was missing in this reconfiguration was a fundamental truth: the environment does not recognise convenience as a justification.The numbers are alarming. India burns roughly 5.8 million tonnes (MT) of plastic every year and releases another 3.5 MT into the environment across land, air, and water in the form of debris. Presently, in our consumerist market, almost every item for consumption is packed in multi-layered plastic packaging. The plastic packaged goods increase shelf life, aesthetic value, and most notably profits for conglomerates, while on the other hand the disproportionate waste that gets generated is externalised for collection, processing and disposal to citizens, local governments and informal workers from marginalised communities. These materials are non-biodegradable, persist indefinitely in the environment, and silently infiltrate soil, water bodies, and the food chain in the form of microplastics and nano plastics. Cows routinely die due to plastic ingestion, rivers remain choked with waste, and urban fringes transform into growing mounds of discarded packaging. Unfortunately, the leviathan of plastic pollution moves faster than our regulatory systems can keep pace.Recognising the scale of the crisis, the Government of India introduced the Plastic Waste Management Rules 2016. These rules strengthened reporting requirements and introduced the foundational concept of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). Later amendments, especially those notified in 2018, 2022, 2024, and 2025, attempted to address gaps related to multi layer plastics, biodegradable plastics, recycled content, penalties, and traceability. Yet the most critical element remains unchanged. Producers, importers, and brand owners must assume primary responsibility for the plastic waste their products generate. However, in practice, the EPR framework faces several challenges. Targets are geo-neutral, allowing obligations in one state to be offset by questionable efforts elsewhere. This complicates monitoring and undermines local accountability. Credit certificates also require strict auditing to ensure they reflect genuine waste collection and recycling rather than mere paperwork. A recent order dated 26.07.2024 of the National Green Tribunal, which issued notices to the CPCB and MoEFCC after nearly six lakhs fake EPR certificates were uncovered from plastic recycling companies, illustrates the severity of the problem and the need for much stronger verification systems. Despite the presence of a strong legal framework, it only takes a casual walk through any city to witness its limitations. Plastic packaging sprawls across markets, highways, canals, and farmlands, revealing the gulf between regulatory intent and ground reality.It is against this backdrop that the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) undertook a comprehensive plastic waste brand audit across the state. The objective was straightforward. The PPCB sought to identify the principal contributors to the plastic waste footprint in Punjab and to create a data backed foundation for accountability and systemic change. The audit revealed what many have long suspected. A relatively small number of large, powerful brands contribute disproportionately to the problem. These are entities with deep financial resources, sophisticated supply chains, and the capacity to influence consumer behaviour at scale. With such capacity comes moral and regulatory responsibility.The purpose of this exercise is not to create another stack of documents. It is meant to trigger a shift in intent. If companies can invest in market expansion, product design and advertising campaigns featuring top celebrities, they can certainly invest in building effective mechanisms to retrieve plastic waste from consumers. We recognise that the gap is not technological rather ideological. In our aim to move from an externalisation of waste regime, brands are being encouraged to take moral, legal and ecological responsibility for their waste. One of the key directions being strongly encouraged is the development of incentive-based schemes for consumers. For years, waste management has relied excessively on municipal bodies, informal waste sector workers ragpickers, and citizen goodwill. This approach is fundamentally unfair. The burden of cleanup must fall on those who profit from the production and sale of plastic packaging. Deposit return systems, loyalty-based collection incentives, doorstep buyback models, take back kiosks, and digital reward systems are entirely feasible. When brands innovate, markets respond. The same creativity that fuels market growth must now be applied to waste recovery.Story continues below this adAt its heart, the brand audit is more than a compliance exercise. It is a call to conscience. Plastic pollution is not the inevitable price of development. It is the result of choices made without foresight. The responsibility cannot rest solely with consumers or municipal authorities. In Punjab, the PPCB is nudging investment directly in infrastructure including collection points, material recovery facilities, and modern recycling plants.India’s EPR regime has to hold brands genuinely accountable for delivering a cleaner, waste-responsible India and Punjab currently is leading the charge. With the implementation of new waste management rules, other states must also take similar steps and leave no gap for plastic waste to be dumped in lieu of profit for a select few. Successful implementation of EPR would lead to greater public and environmental good, that should surpass the collective market capital of the polluter brands.The author is Chairperson, Punjab Pollution Control Board and has previously worked with World Bank