Four tonnes of medical waste from 400 healthcare institutions in Coimbatore and Tirupur districts are processed every day by Tekno Therm Industries, which operates the TNPCB-authorised biomedical waste treatment facility in Coimbatore.
According to S. Sudhakar, partner of Tekno Therm Industries, the firm invested around Rs. 5 crore to set up the facility near Chettipalayam, around 30 km from the city, in 2005 and is run in collaboration with the Indian Medical Association.
Explaining the process, he says the bio-medical waste is segregated by the hospital and stored in colour-coded bins as per the guidelines of the TNPCB. The waste is collected on a daily basis in containers by the firm, which has employed nearly a dozen vehicles for this purpose. The material is processed and anatomical parts and blood tissues are incinerated at 850 degree centigrade in a primary chamber and again at 1,050 degree centigrade in a secondary chamber. The exhaust air is purified through a scrubber to remove the moisture and the waste effluent is treated before being released. Other parts are disinfected through an autoclave unit at 135 degree centigrade.
The firm charges Rs. 5.50 per bed per day. However, the prices are decided by other agencies involved in the process. For small clinics, the firm charges Rs. 750 a month. The profit margins are not high in this industry and the facility is more of a service-oriented one as it serves even small nursing homes and primary health centres. “Disposal of bio-medical waste is a capital-intensive industry with profits likely to be expected only in the long-term,” Mr. Sudhakar says.
4 tonnes
of waste generated every day
