Unable to manage and dispose of their bio-medical waste properly, leading government hospitals in the city, including the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Ram Manohar Lohia, Maharaja Agrasen, Northern Railways Central, Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar, Lala Ram Swaroop Institute of Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases, MVID and two ESI hospitals in Rohini and Basai Darapur, have been directed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to immediately “rectify their shortcoming and comply fully with the disposal of bio-medical waste standards.”
A Bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar passed the order earlier this week after the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), which inspected the hospitals, said while government hospitals had complied with most rules regarding bio-medical waste disposal, they were yet to comply with the rules fully.
The Tribunal said many government hospitals have not “remedied all shortcomings” in disposal of bio-medical waste.
“What is worrying is the fact that government hospitals deal with a larger section of society. We are of the considered view that it may not be fruitful to direct prosecution of medical superintendents or directors of the hospitals, but we make it clear that compliance of shortcomings and deficiencies be done at the earliest,” noted the direction issued by the Tribunal.
Meanwhile, to ensure complete compliance of the rules by the erring hospitals, the Bench has ordered setting up of a committee to inspect all nine hospitals before next date of hearing and place a comprehensive report before it. The committee is to comprise Member Secretaries of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and DPCC, as well as senior scientists nominated by Head of Department of the Environment Protection Training and Research Institute in Hyderabad.
The committee has also been directed to inspect eight other hospitals, including Safdarjung, Lady Hardinge, Kalawati Saran, Sucheta Kriplani, Bara Hindu Rao and Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan, “which were stated to have partially complied with the rules, but certain steps remained to be taken.”
On July 19, the NGT had directed the CPCB and DPCC to conduct a survey of all hospitals which were violating municipal solid waste rules and to submit a comprehensive report as to whether they were complying with the Tribunal’s directions to implement waste management rules.
