``We found that plastic bags were not only choking our drains but choking plant growth when they were buried in the soil,'' Brigadier R N Kapur, Commander Mumbai Sub Area told newspersons in the city on Monday.He said that permits of vendors who distributed plastic carry bags in the military area would be revoked. People have also been discouraged from throwing plastic bags into the sea.

Banning the plastic bag is the next step the army took after its highly successful vermiculture project which has seen a fall in its biodegradable garbage levels.

``Though an anti-plastic bag campaign has been on our minds for nearly a year, we were looking for an appropriate time tolaunch it,'' Colonel R K Bakshi, Administration Commandant, Mumbai told Express Newsline.

Army authorities now plan to issue advertisements on the local cable TV network with the spiel `carry your own cloth shopping bags to the market.' Sister service and neighbour in the area, the Indian Navy, successfully kicked the plastic carry bag nearly two years ago.

At the wooded military area near Navy Nagar, the army unit in Mumbai launched its eco-week inaugurated by Major General A R Kumar, the General Officer Commanding Maharashtra and Gujarat Area.

Though Colaba and Kalina have dense greenery, the main thrust of the efforts is to cover unoccupied stretches of land which predominantly lie adjacent to its areas, army officials said.

Military station Colaba has three ecological cells under it located at Colaba, Kalina and Malad responsible for general cleanliness, planting of trees and tending saplings.

It was a proud army unit that unveiled its achievements in its ecological offensive. However,Brigadier Kapur said that eco-week was by no means the start of the army's ecological drive, ``It's an ongoing process.'' Last month, army jawans planted 3,000 saplings at the Mahalaxmi Race Course grounds. Kapur described the work done by the jawans as an attempt to strengthen ties with the city. Over 3000 saplings have already been planted in a record time of three days in the army area in Colaba.

A pilot vermiculture project the army unit began in 1996 with assistance from NGO Green Cross Society has borne fruit. The garbage problem had literally assumed mountainous proportions. The BMC could clear the garbage once in four days. Employing the deep burrowing earthworms to break down the bio-degradable waste into manure saw garbage loads being brought down to manageable levels. However, it was the non-biodegradable plastic that was proving to be a nuisance, which explains the army's decision to ban plastic bags. The army says that the success of this project has inspired other units to take up similarprojects in Maharashtra and Gujarat. But, as the army cautions, no project whether to kick plastic or separate garbage, is successful without the wholehearted support of the community. The initiative should come from the public and it should become a household project, army officials say.