Waste management firm accused of dumping biomedical waste in the open

June 30, 2020 10:56 pm | Updated 10:57 pm IST - HOSUR

The biomedical waste said to be dumped by the waste management company’s van at Hosur.

The biomedical waste said to be dumped by the waste management company’s van at Hosur.

The Ramky Group of Companies entrusted with the handling and disposal of biomedical waste has been accused of dumping waste in an open field in Hosur.

The incident was brought to light by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) that was responding to a distress call from the locality. The SPCA had received calls on the unusual sight of young goats with swollen stomach and a few dead stray dogs in the field. A field visit by the team found heaps of medical waste, dumped in the open and in sacks with the logo of Ramky company.

In a video footage accessed from a CCTV camera in one of the shops in the vicinity, Ramky Group’s van turns into the open field and dumps heaps of biomedical waste. Livestock, dogs and stray monkeys are seen foraging the field.

The van was seen dumping heaps of biomedical waste on a open plot near the ESI outer ring road, less than 2 km from the ESI hospital, a COVID-19 treatment facility.

The heaps included swab collection kits, blood sample test tubes, urology bags, ventilator tubes, IV tubes, among other biomedical waste.

The medical waste was also being sold to scrap dealers, says SPCA district secretary Sanjay Tanesh. “There are scrap dealers in the locality who have claimed that the plastic bottles are recycled by them,” he said.

According to Hosur Municipal Commissioner Balasubramaniam, the biomedical waste was being incinerated and the plot cleared. District Environmental Engineer of Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board S. Palanisamy said the company has been summoned for an inquiry on Wednesday.

“The waste should be sent to the biomedical disposal facility at Edappadi. We do not know why it was dumped there. But they are not COVID-19 waste, which is taken directly to the facility. We will take suitable action,” Mr. Palanisamy said.

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