To ensure effective disposal of biomedical waste, the district chapter of the Karnataka Private Medical Establishments’ Association (KPMEA) has set up a common biomedical waste facility on the outskirts of the city.
The association has contributed around Rs. 1 crore for the facility, which has been set up as per the directive of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) to government and private hospitals for the proper management of hospital waste.
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“As per the guidelines, such a facility should be established in each district. The association volunteered to set up the facility here with the help of the KSPCB and the district administration,” said Priyadarshini Patil, president of KPMEA.
Speaking to presspersons here on Monday, she said that the city had around 120 hospitals and 111 clinics that generated around 140 kg of biomedical waste every day.
Earlier, in the absence of such a facility, the waste was buried, which was not a proper way to dispose of it.
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“Considering this, the association borrowed funds from doctors,” Dr. Patil said.
Elaborating on the facility, she said that as per the guidelines, every hospital should pay Rs. 5.40/per bed/day for collecting and disposing of biomedical waste.
The association had four vehicles that collected the waste every day.
Disposal of waste
Dr. Patil explained that at the facility, the waste was disposed of in different ways.
“While anatomical waste is incinerated, other waste such as plastic is shredded and sent to recycling units,” she said.
She said that at present, the facility was collecting waste only from hospitals in the city.
However, it will soon be extended to hospitals located in a 100-km radius around the city.
Dr. Patil said the biomedical waste facility would be formally inaugurated on December 27.
Office-bearers of the association were present.