Since the disposal of bio-medical waste has been a major problem for the civic body, the Tiruchi City Corporation has made it compulsory for private hospitals and clinics to set up solid waste management system for disposal of biomedical and other waste.
Corporation Commissioner S. Sivasubramanian told The Hindu that hospitals, hotels and restaurants and markets accounted for nearly 20 % of the total waste in Tiruchi. There was a need to revamp the solid waste management in the city with the focus on creating customised solid waste management system by bulk garbage generators. Hence, it had been decided to make all hospitals in the city to create a system to dispose all waste.
He said it had been found that a few hospitals did not have a standard mechanism to dispose bio-medical waste. Some of the waste were hazardous.
They simply hand over the waste to the garbage collectors just. Bio-medical waste should not be handed over to the sanitary workers, he said. Hence, officials have been asked to list out hospitals, and measure the quantum of waste generated daily.
Mr. Sivasubramanian said that the hospitals had a greater role to play in safe disposal of waste. The hospitals, which had been identified as bulk generators of waste, should have a solid waste management system on their own. In addition to it, they should set up incinerators to dispose bio-medical waste.
Instructions had been given to the officials to impress upon the need for creating customised solid waste management in hospitals.
They would be given a time frame for setting up the facilities.
Bio-medical waste means any waste, which is generated during the diagnosis, treatment or immunization of human beings or animals or in research activities pertaining thereto or in the production or testing of biologicals, and including categories mentioned in Schedule I, of the BMW rules, 2016.
