In response to an RTI petition, the Telangana State Pollution Control Board (PCB) has revealed that a number of healthcare facilities (HCF) in and around Hyderabad continue to remain operational without the authorization under the Bio-Medical Waste Management (BMW) Rules, 2016, despite being issued notices earlier. In the petition filed by the secretary of Forum For Good Governance (FGG) M Padmanabha Reddy, the board revealed that there exist about 4200 HCFs in the state with a bed strength of 1.02 lakh. About 1500 HCFs are located in Hyderabad and surrounding areas. Of these, 350 HCFs are operating without taking authorization under the BMW management rules. The board also said that 11 common BMW treatment and disposal plants are approved and available in the state but their working non- systematic and ineffective. Speaking to indianexpress.com, petitioner M Padmanabha Reddy said the matter is very serious but not being discussed as much as required. "In the hospital, the biomedical wastes are mixed with municipal solid wastes. Though there are clear rules from the government of India that it should be separated at the source itself and sent to treatment plants, it is not being followed," he added. On Saturday, the FGG submitted a representation to Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan seeking her intervention. "Most of the tanks and water bodies in Hyderabad are being used to wash the blood-stained towels, bedsheets, etc, from hospitals, leading to the spreading of harmful germs. In many hospitals, bio-medical waste is mixed with municipal solid waste increasing the chances of spreading diseases and contamination of soil and water, thus putting health to grave danger. Considering the gravity of the situation, a representation was made to the chief secretary, government of Telangana, for taking immediate action, but no action has been taken," the representation read. They have appealed the Governor to direct the state government to take immediate action by constituting special teams and see HCFs work under proper authorization and strictly follow the rules. What is Bio-Medical Waste(BMW) Any waste generated during diagnosis, treatment, immunization of human beings or animals, research activities by healthcare facilities (HCF) such as hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, dispensaries, veterinary institutions, pathological laboratories, blood banks, etc where diagnosis, treatment, immunization of human beings or animals is provided. What do the rules say To enforce scientific disposal of the bio-medical waste, the central government had bought in the Bio-Medical Waste (management and handling) Rules in 1998. Under this, all HCFs are required to apply to the pollution control board and take authorization in handling the disposing of the bio-medical waste as per rules. Operating HCFs without authorization is an offense. Scientific management of BMW is required to protect public health and the environment against adverse effects due to careless handling and improper disposal of such waste. How should BMW be disposed of Bio-medical waste should be properly segregated, packed in containers, and transported to treatment plants. No untreated BMW shall be mixed with other wastes. It should be segregated into containers and properly labelled. To ensure proper treatment and disposal of liquid waste, sewerage treatment plants (STPs) should be established by each of the HCFs.
