750 health institutes sans waste disposal plan
Vikas Sharma
Tribune News Service
Jammu, September 3
The biomedical waste management laws are not only being violated by premier government healthcare institutions, private healthcare facilities and clinics are flouting laws.
Sources claimed that the J&K State Pollution Control Board (JKSPCB) had issued a notice to more than 750 healthcare institutions in Jammu division this year for violating the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, and the Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016. They said Jammu district topped the list, where more than 200 healthcare facilities, including government primary health centres, were found violating the biomedical waste management laws.
All health care facilities that were served a notice by the JKSPCB were operating without approval from the State Pollution Control Board under the water and air Acts.
“More than 100 healthcare facilities, a majority of them private clinics and laboratories in Kathua district, were served notices for violation of biomedical waste management rules. Like government hospitals, which are dependent on a private firm for collection of biomedical waste, private health care facilities also rely on it.
“The quantity of the waste generated by private health facilities is far less than generated by the government hospitals but they have no waste management plan. Sometimes the biomedical waste can be seen lying in the open for days,” sources claimed.
“Though the exact number of defaulting healthcare facilities, which had received the PCB notice is not known, around 82 healthcare institutions in Udhampur district, including government run, were issued notices by the State Pollution Control Board followed by Rajouri (79), Doda (68), Ramban (63), Poonch (42), Reasi (40), Kishtwar (34) and Samba (27),” they said.
As per the Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016, all persons, who generate, collect, receive, store, transport, treat, dispose of or handle biomedical waste in any form, including hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, dispensaries, research labs, etc, have to apply to the JKSPCB for authorisation.
