Odisha: Private hospital fined Rs 1 lakh for dumping bio-medical waste

Bhubaneswar: An Odisha-based private hospital has been fined Rs 1 lakh along with a warning by the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) for illegally dumping hazardous bio-medical waste.  

The BMC imposed a fine on a private hospital situated at Kharvela Nagar in Bhubaneswar on Sunday for violation of sanitation norms.

In a tweet, BMC said "BMC imposed a penalty of Rs.1,00,000/- on the hospital for illegal dumping of mixed bio-medical waste & CDMO, Khordha informed to initiate action as per Clinical Establishments(Registration & Regulation) Act against the Hospital."

Also read- Nagpur Municipal Corporation Slaps Four Hospitals, Pathology Lab With Fines For Dumping Biomedical Waste

The biomedical waste (management and handling) rules 2011 state biomedical wastes such as cotton, needles, and body parts and other wastes generated from hospitals should be dumped in separate containers at the primary levels (in the patient wards). Then, it should be disposed of in the incinerator.

If the medical waste are not segregated (different kinds of waste kept in different containers for disposal), and not disposed properly, it is likely to generate toxic chemicals, which can pollute the environment.

Speaking to TOI, BMC commissioner Vijay Kulange said, "The hospitals are apathetic towards disposal of hazardous biomedical waste. They are doing it deliberately to cut costs. They have dedicated agencies to lift bio-medical waste, yet they are flouting the norms. It is a sorry state of affairs by such responsible institutions. We are adopting zero tolerance policy towards all violations of sanitation."

In response to this, Director of the hospital said, “It was not medical waste. The waste basically contained waste papers and wrappers of medicines. The private agency of BMC was supposed to lift them but it has not done so for the past 10 days. Our biomedical waste is lifted by another agency.”

The Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) had banned the burning of biomedical waste because of the release of toxic chemicals, such as furan and dioxin and carcinogenic substance which causes cancer. Smrutiprava Samantroy, a former scientist at OSPCB said, "If the waste is not strewn here and there, it will lead to the release of persistent organic pollutants."

Also read- Nagpur Pathology Lab Fined Rs 1 Lakh For Violating Biomedical Waste Disposal Norms