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15 Private Hospitals in City Have no Biomedical Waste Disposal System

Fifteen private hospitals in the city were found lacking a proper arrangement for disposal of bio medical waste. The matter surfaced following an investigation by magistrates and the chief medical officer (CMO). On basis of the investigation report, district magistrate NG Ravi Kumar has directed the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) to take action against the hospitals. CMO Mukesh Vats said, “Hospitals were found violating rules by mixing medical waste with common solid waste. They did not have separate containers to store medical waste. Besides, there were poor standards of sanitation and hygiene.” Following complaints of violation of standard norms on bio medical waste management, the district magistrate had directed the additional city magistrates and the CMO to conduct an inspection of hospitals. The probe found 15 private centers flouting the Biomedical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998, which states that such waste cannot be stored longer than 48 hours, has to be segregated cannot be mixed with other wastes.

Of the 15 hospitals identified so far, seven are located in trans-yamuna area of the city. The district magistrate has directed the officials to continue inspections at other places. “Hospitals that are not following standard norms in the disposal of highly-infectious bio-medical waste are being identified. In this regard, officials of the district administration and health department are conducting joint inspections. UPPCB has been directed to take action against such centers,” said DM Kumar. Biomedical waste is generated during the diagnosis, treatment, or immunization of human beings or animals. It can also be generated during research. Biomedical waste may include disposables, anatomical waste, cultures, discarded medicine, chemical wastes, etc. These are in the form of disposable syringes, swabs, bandages, body fluids, human excreta, etc. Such waste has to be disposed of within 48 hours, as it is infectious and poses a serious threat to human health if not managed in a scientific and discriminate manner. Burning it can dangerously pollute the environment.

As per norms, the Agra Municipal Corporation (AMC) is only responsible for management of municipal solid waste (MSW) and is not supposed to collect or dispose of medical waste. The health department assigns the job to a private agency. However, civic body workers have earlier been found to collect medical waste to earn a profit from selling it to scrap dealers. According to sources, the illegally collected biomedical waste is segregated before it is sold. Single-use items like cotton, bandages etc. are mixed with MSW or burnt, putting public health at a high risk. According to pollution board officials, 1 kg of every 4 kg waste generated at a hospital is highly infectious. There more than 500 private nursing homes and hospitals in Agra. Apart from that, there are around 1200 clinics spread across the city. – TOI

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