*Majority of Govt hospitals flouting law with impunity
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Feb 23: At a time when enough stress is being laid on scientific disposal of bio-medical waste, around 50% of total health care establishments in Jammu and Kashmir have failed to submit Annual Report about compliance to Bio-Medical Waste (Management & Handling) Rules within the time schedule fixed by the Pollution Control Board. Shockingly, the level of non-compliance is more from the Government establishments as compared to the private ones.
As per the provisions of Bio-Medical Waste (Management & Handling) Rules, it is the duty of owner/management of an institution generating bio-medical waste, which includes a hospital, nursing home, clinic, dispensary, veterinary institution, animal house, pathological laboratory and blood bank to take all steps to ensure that such waste is handled without any adverse affect to human health and the environment.
Moreover, they are required to set up in accordance with the time-schedule in Schedule VI of the Bio-Medical Waste (Management & Handling) Rules, requisite bio-medical waste treatment facilities like incinerator, autoclave and microwave system for the treatment of waste, or, ensure requisite treatment of waste at a common waste treatment facility.
They are also required to submit Annual Report every year carrying the information about the categories and quantities of bio-medical wastes handled during the preceding year after obtaining proper authorization from the Pollution Control Board.
Keeping these provisions in mind, the J&K Pollution Control Board on January 1, 2015 issued a circular directing all the health care establishments (both Government and private) generating bio-medical waste to submit Annual Report under Bio-Medical Waste (Management & Handling) Rules, 1998 for the period between January to December 2014 by January 31, 2015 positively.
Through this circular, it was made clear that in case of non-compliance legal action under Environmental (Protection) Act 1986 will be initiated against the defaulters.
However, only 50% of those establishments, which have obtained authorization from the Pollution Control Board have ensured adherence to the directive within the stipulated time-frame while as remaining 50% chose to willfully ignore the implementation of law, official sources told EXCELSIOR.
“Though compliance level has increased this year as compared to previous years that too following intervention of Health Secretary sought by the Forest Secretary during the Advisory Committee meeting but the prevailing situation doesn’t permit any of these authorities to be complacent. “There are numerous health care establishments in the private sector which have yet not come forward to obtain even authorization from the Pollution Control Board”, sources informed.
About the compliance from the Government establishments, they said, “the scenario is worse than the private establishments as huge number of Government sector institutions have not come forward to obtain authorization for scientific disposal of wastes”.
“This clearly indicates that Government is the major violator of the law and is itself promoting unscientific disposal of bio-medical wastes”, they said, adding “the intensity of situation can be gauged from the fact that no action as warranted under law was ever initiated against any of the Government establishment”.
When asked about the action against private establishments, sources said that list of those establishments which have not submitted Annual Report is being prepared by the PCB and the same would be submitted to the higher authorities for necessary action.
As per the provisions of the Environmental (Protection) Act 1986, Pollution Control Board can order closure of any establishment violating the law or stoppage of the supply of electricity or water.
Moreover, whosoever fails to comply with or contravenes any of the provisions of this Act, or the Rules, shall, in respect of each such failure or contravention, be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years with fine which may extend to one lakh rupees, or with both.
In case the failure or contravention continues, additional fine which may extend to five thousand rupees for every day during which such failure or contravention continues after the conviction for the first such failure or contravention.
“Now, it is to be seen as to how the Pollution Control Board acts in order to ensure strict compliance of law”, sources said.
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